Aquatic Capital Management LLC Makes New Investment in Bio-Techne Co. (NASDAQ:TECH)

Aquatic Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Bio-Techne Co. (NASDAQ:TECH - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 8,825 shares of the biotechnology company's stock, valued at approximately $636,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. UMB Bank n.a. raised its stake in Bio-Techne by 46.4% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 530 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 168 shares during the period. GeoWealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Bio-Techne in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $43,000. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its holdings in shares of Bio-Techne by 60.4% during the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 672 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 253 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Bio-Techne by 35.0% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 763 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $55,000 after acquiring an additional 198 shares during the period. Finally, Huntington National Bank grew its holdings in Bio-Techne by 42.6% in the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 1,078 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $78,000 after buying an additional 322 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 98.95% of the company's stock.

Bio-Techne Stock Up 1.7 %

NASDAQ:TECH traded up $0.86 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $50.49. 1,525,113 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,208,525. Bio-Techne Co. has a one year low of $46.01 and a one year high of $85.57. The company has a market cap of $7.98 billion, a PE ratio of 51.00, a PEG ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 1.46. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $55.92 and its 200-day simple moving average is $66.93. The company has a quick ratio of 2.77, a current ratio of 3.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14.

Bio-Techne (NASDAQ:TECH - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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 return on equity of 12.73% and a net margin of 13.22%. Equities analysts predict that Bio-Techne Co. will post 1.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Bio-Techne Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Monday, February 17th were paid a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.63%. Bio-Techne's dividend payout ratio is presently 32.32%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on TECH shares. Robert W. Baird lowered Bio-Techne from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $88.00 to $68.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on Bio-Techne from $79.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. StockNews.com raised Bio-Techne from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Evercore ISI initiated coverage on shares of Bio-Techne in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $75.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Citigroup cut their target price on Bio-Techne from $80.00 to $70.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $81.14.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Amy E. Herr sold 1,860 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the director now owns 1,976 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $130,336.96. This represents a 48.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 3.90% of the company's stock.

Bio-Techne 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.