Aviva PLC Has $6.85 Million Stock Position in Bio-Techne Co. (NASDAQ:TECH)

Aviva PLC grew its position in Bio-Techne Co. (NASDAQ:TECH - Free Report) by 1,546.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 95,063 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after buying an additional 89,289 shares during the quarter. Aviva PLC owned approximately 0.06% of Bio-Techne worth $6,847,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in TECH. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its position in shares of Bio-Techne by 46.4% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 530 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 168 shares in the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted 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 worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 253 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its position in 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 purchasing an additional 198 shares during the period. Kiely Wealth Advisory Group Inc. grew its holdings in Bio-Techne by 1,355.6% during the fourth quarter. Kiely Wealth Advisory Group Inc. now owns 1,048 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $81,000 after purchasing an additional 976 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Huntington National Bank grew its stake 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 during the last quarter. 98.95% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have issued reports on TECH. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Bio-Techne from $79.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Citigroup decreased their target price on Bio-Techne from $80.00 to $70.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Evercore ISI began coverage on Bio-Techne in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $75.00 price target on the stock. Robert W. Baird cut Bio-Techne from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $88.00 to $68.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Scotiabank raised their price objective on shares of Bio-Techne from $88.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Bio-Techne currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $81.25.

Bio-Techne Stock Performance

Bio-Techne stock traded up $0.96 on Monday, hitting $51.68. The company's stock had a trading volume of 173,859 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,179,187. Bio-Techne Co. has a one year low of $46.44 and a one year high of $85.57. The firm has a market cap of $8.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 52.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a quick ratio of 2.77, a current ratio of 3.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $61.32 and a 200-day moving average price of $69.53.

Bio-Techne (NASDAQ:TECH - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The biotechnology company reported $0.35 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.38 by ($0.03). Bio-Techne had a net margin of 13.22% and a return on equity of 12.73%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Bio-Techne Co. will post 1.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Bio-Techne Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Monday, February 17th were given a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.62%. Bio-Techne's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 24.24%.

Insider Activity at Bio-Techne

In other Bio-Techne news, Director Amy E. Herr sold 1,860 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.96, for a total transaction of $122,685.60. Following the sale, the director now directly 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Kim Kelderman sold 13,392 shares of Bio-Techne stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.29, for a total transaction of $1,035,067.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 39,004 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,014,619.16. This trade represents a 25.56 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 3.90% of the stock is owned by 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.