Bio-Techne Co. (NASDAQ:TECH) Stock Holdings Lifted by Alliancebernstein L.P.

Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its position in Bio-Techne Co. (NASDAQ:TECH) by 0.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 169,977 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 345 shares during the quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P.’s holdings in Bio-Techne were worth $12,243,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. UMB Bank n.a. grew its stake in Bio-Techne by 46.4% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 530 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 168 shares in the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its holdings in Bio-Techne by 60.4% in the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 672 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 253 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its holdings in Bio-Techne by 35.0% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 763 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $55,000 after acquiring an additional 198 shares in the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Bio-Techne by 45.3% in the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,376 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $99,000 after acquiring an additional 429 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its holdings in Bio-Techne by 59.4% in the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 2,096 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $151,000 after acquiring an additional 781 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.95% of the company’s stock.

Bio-Techne Stock Performance

TECH opened at $54.07 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $62.21 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $69.95. Bio-Techne Co. has a 1 year low of $46.44 and a 1 year high of $85.57. The company has a market capitalization of $8.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.62, a P/E/G ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 3.94 and a quick ratio of 2.77.

Bio-Techne (NASDAQ:TECH) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The biotechnology company reported $0.35 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.38 by ($0.03). Bio-Techne had a net margin of 13.22% and a return on equity of 12.73%. Equities analysts expect that Bio-Techne Co. will post 1.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bio-Techne Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Monday, February 17th were issued a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.59%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. Bio-Techne’s payout ratio is currently 32.32%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on TECH shares. KeyCorp reaffirmed a “sector weight” rating on shares of Bio-Techne in a report on Wednesday. Citigroup lowered their price objective on Bio-Techne from $80.00 to $70.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. StockNews.com upgraded Bio-Techne from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 4th. Evercore ISI initiated coverage on Bio-Techne in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $75.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Robert W. Baird lowered Bio-Techne from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $88.00 to $68.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Bio-Techne presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $81.25.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Amy E. Herr sold 1,860 shares of Bio-Techne stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.96, for a total transaction of $122,685.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 1,976 shares in the company, valued at approximately $130,336.96. This trade represents a 48.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Kim Kelderman sold 13,392 shares of Bio-Techne stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.29, for a total value of $1,035,067.68. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 39,004 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,014,619.16. The trade was a 25.56 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 3.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Bio-Techne Company Profile

Bio-Techne Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, develops, manufactures, and sells life science reagents, instruments, and services for the research and clinical diagnostic markets in the United States, the United Kingdom, rest of Europe, Middle East, and Africa, Greater China, rest of Asia-Pacific, and internationally.