Bio-Techne (NASDAQ:TECH) Cut to "Hold" at Leerink Partners

Key Points

• Leerink Partners downgraded Bio-Techne from strong-buy to hold, adding to a wave of more cautious analyst calls on the stock.
• Other firms have also turned less bullish recently, including Deutsche Bank cutting the stock to hold and William Blair moving it to market perform, while the consensus rating remains Moderate Buy with an average target of $65.79.
• Bio-Techne’s shares were trading near $70.70, close to their 52-week high, despite its latest earnings missing estimates and revenue coming in slightly below forecasts.

Bio-Techne (NASDAQ:TECH - Get Free Report) was downgraded by stock analysts at Leerink Partners from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report issued on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

Other analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered shares of Bio-Techne from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $73.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Friday. Zacks Research lowered Bio-Techne from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Monday, June 8th. William Blair downgraded shares of Bio-Techne from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Thursday. Piper Sandler initiated coverage on shares of Bio-Techne in a report on Thursday, June 11th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $65.00 target price on the stock. Finally, TD Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Bio-Techne in a research note on Tuesday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $65.79.

Bio-Techne Stock Performance

Shares of TECH opened at $70.70 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $11.07 billion, a PE ratio of 102.47, a P/E/G ratio of 5.67 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a quick ratio of 3.18, a current ratio of 4.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $52.70 and a 200-day simple moving average of $56.99. Bio-Techne has a 52-week low of $43.19 and a 52-week high of $72.16.

Bio-Techne (NASDAQ:TECH - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The biotechnology company reported $0.53 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.55 by ($0.02). Bio-Techne had a return on equity of 13.57% and a net margin of 9.05%.The firm had revenue of $311.42 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $316.11 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.56 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Bio-Techne will post 1.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bio-Techne

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its position in Bio-Techne by 15,993.8% in the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 7,725 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $404,000 after acquiring an additional 7,677 shares in the last quarter. Henshaw Capital LLC increased its stake in Bio-Techne by 31.2% during the 1st quarter. Henshaw Capital LLC now owns 45,905 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $2,399,000 after buying an additional 10,915 shares during the period. Summitry LLC lifted its holdings in Bio-Techne by 17.1% in the 1st quarter. Summitry LLC now owns 6,013 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $314,000 after buying an additional 879 shares in the last quarter. Intrinsic Edge Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Bio-Techne in the 1st quarter valued at about $5,749,000. Finally, Edgestream Partners L.P. purchased a new position in Bio-Techne in the 1st quarter valued at about $292,000. 98.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Headlines Impacting Bio-Techne

Here are the key news stories impacting Bio-Techne this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Merck KGaA agreed to buy Bio-Techne for $73 per share in cash, giving shareholders a clear exit value and likely driving the stock toward the deal price. Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, Agrees to Acquire Bio-Techne
• Positive Sentiment: The offer represents a sizable premium to Bio-Techne’s recent share price, which typically boosts takeover-target stocks as investors price in deal completion. Germany's Merck to buy Bio-Techne for $73 per share
• Neutral Sentiment: Multiple law firms announced shareholder investigations into whether Bio-Techne’s board secured a fair price, which could create legal noise but does not change the announced deal terms. Shareholder Alert: Ademi LLP investigates whether Bio-Techne Corporation is obtaining a Fair Price for Public Shareholders
• Neutral Sentiment: Reported short-interest data showed no meaningful short position, so the move appears driven more by the takeover announcement than by short covering. Bio-Techne Surges on $73-Per-Share Cash Takeover Agreement

About Bio-Techne

Bio-Techne Corporation NASDAQ: TECH is a global life sciences company that develops, manufactures and sells high-quality reagents, instruments and services for the research, diagnostic and bioprocessing markets. Its core product offerings include recombinant proteins, antibodies, immunoassays, nucleic acid probes and kits, single-cell analysis solutions and automated protein analysis systems. Flagship brands such as R&D Systems, Novus Biologicals, ProteinSimple and Advanced Cell Diagnostics provide researchers and clinicians with reliable tools for cell biology, immunology, proteomics and genomics applications.

Headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Bio-Techne serves customers across North America, Europe and the Asia-Pacific region through a combination of direct sales, distributors and strategic partnerships.

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