Bio-Techne (NASDAQ:TECH) Downgraded to Equal Weight Rating by Wells Fargo & Company

Key Points

• Wells Fargo downgraded Bio-Techne from “overweight” to “equal weight” and set a $73 price target, implying only about 1.1% upside from the stock’s $72.20 price.
• Analyst sentiment is broadly cautious: Bio-Techne has an average “hold” rating, with 14 holds, two buys and one sell, and an average price target of $68.92.
• Quarterly results were mixed but slightly ahead on revenue: EPS matched estimates at $0.52, while revenue reached $321.19 million versus the $314.63 million consensus, representing 1.3% year-over-year growth.

Bio-Techne (NASDAQ:TECH - Get Free Report) was downgraded by analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating in a research note issued on Thursday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. They currently have a $73.00 price objective on the biotechnology company's stock. Wells Fargo & Company's target price would indicate a potential upside of 1.10% from the company's current price.

TECH has been the topic of several other reports. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Bio-Techne from $49.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered Bio-Techne from an "outperform" rating to a "sector perform" rating and upped their price objective for the company from $62.00 to $73.00 in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut Bio-Techne from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $73.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Friday, June 26th. TD Cowen cut shares of Bio-Techne from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $65.00 to $73.00 in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $50.00 price objective on shares of Bio-Techne in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Bio-Techne presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $68.92.

Bio-Techne Trading Down 0.0%

Shares of Bio-Techne stock traded down $0.03 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $72.20. The stock had a trading volume of 681,669 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,464,960. The firm has a market cap of $11.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 104.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 8.59 and a beta of 1.28. 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 firm has a 50-day moving average of $66.61 and a two-hundred day moving average of $59.19. Bio-Techne has a 12-month low of $43.19 and a 12-month high of $72.39.

Bio-Techne (NASDAQ:TECH - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 12th. The biotechnology company reported $0.52 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.52. The business had revenue of $321.19 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $314.63 million. Bio-Techne had a net margin of 9.05% and a return on equity of 13.57%. The company's revenue was up 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.53 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Bio-Techne will post 1.65 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bio-Techne

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Athos Capital Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Bio-Techne during the second quarter worth about $7,065,000. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Bio-Techne in the 2nd quarter valued at $440,000. PEAK6 LLC bought a new position in Bio-Techne during the second quarter worth $4,800,000. Bank of Nova Scotia acquired a new stake in Bio-Techne during the 2nd quarter worth about $486,000. Finally, Commerce Bank acquired a new stake in Bio-Techne during the second quarter worth approximately $2,374,000. Institutional investors own 98.95% of the company's stock.

Key Bio-Techne News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Bio-Techne exceeded quarterly revenue expectations, reporting $321.2 million versus the $314.6 million consensus estimate. Organic revenue increased 3%, led by stronger demand in its research and diagnostics businesses. Reuters article
• Positive Sentiment: Profitability improved substantially on a GAAP basis: fourth-quarter net income was $54.6 million, compared with a $17.7 million loss a year earlier, while GAAP EPS rose to $0.35 from a $0.11 loss. Full-year GAAP EPS increased to $1.16 from $0.46. Quiver Quantitative article
• Positive Sentiment: The company corrected its dividend announcement, confirming a $0.65-per-share payment for shareholders of record on September 4, payable September 24. The larger distribution is supportive for investors, although it may be tied to the pending acquisition. Bio-Techne dividend correction
• Neutral Sentiment: Adjusted EPS was $0.52, matching consensus but declining from $0.53 a year earlier. Reported revenue rose only 1.3% year over year, indicating modest underlying growth. Zacks earnings article
• Negative Sentiment: With the stock near the $73-per-share cash acquisition price, much of the deal-related upside appears already reflected, potentially limiting further gains unless the transaction is completed at a higher value or ahead of schedule. Bio-Techne also said it will stop holding quarterly investor conference calls following the announced Merck 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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

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