Insider Selling: BioLife Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:BLFS) Major Shareholder Sells 500,000 Shares of Stock

Key Points

• Casdin Partners Master Fund, L sold 500,000 shares of BioLife Solutions, Inc. for a total of $11.3 million, representing a 6.49% decrease in their ownership stake.
• Despite the sale, BioLife Solutions' stock price rose by 6.7% in trading, reaching $25.68 per share.
• In its latest earnings report, BioLife Solutions reported a loss of ($0.33) EPS, missing analyst estimates, but exceeded revenue expectations with $25.42 million for the quarter.

BioLife Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:BLFS - Get Free Report) major shareholder Casdin Partners Master Fund, L sold 500,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.60, for a total transaction of $11,300,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 7,207,165 shares in the company, valued at approximately $162,881,929. The trade was a 6.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Large shareholders that own more than 10% of a company's stock are required to disclose their transactions with the SEC.

Casdin Partners Master Fund, L also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Tuesday, June 10th, Casdin Partners Master Fund, L sold 1,000,000 shares of BioLife Solutions stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.80, for a total transaction of $23,800,000.00.

BioLife Solutions Price Performance

NASDAQ:BLFS traded up $0.49 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $24.83. The company had a trading volume of 89,897 shares, compared to its average volume of 481,177. The company has a quick ratio of 3.45, a current ratio of 4.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The company has a market capitalization of $1.19 billion, a PE ratio of -208.07 and a beta of 1.76. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $22.16 and its 200-day moving average price is $23.43. BioLife Solutions, Inc. has a 52-week low of $19.10 and a 52-week high of $29.55.

BioLife Solutions (NASDAQ:BLFS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The medical equipment provider reported ($0.33) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.02) by ($0.31). BioLife Solutions had a positive return on equity of 0.16% and a negative net margin of 5.39%. The company had revenue of $25.42 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $23.71 million. As a group, research analysts expect that BioLife Solutions, Inc. will post -0.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of BioLife Solutions

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of BioLife Solutions in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. State of Wyoming boosted its stake in shares of BioLife Solutions by 353.1% in the 1st quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 1,912 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 1,490 shares during the last quarter. US Bancorp DE grew its stake in shares of BioLife Solutions by 243.7% during the 1st quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 2,155 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 1,528 shares during the period. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. increased its holdings in BioLife Solutions by 12.8% during the second quarter. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. now owns 3,873 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $83,000 after buying an additional 441 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in BioLife Solutions by 18.6% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,223 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $96,000 after purchasing an additional 663 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.24% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Zacks Research raised shares of BioLife Solutions to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, August 11th. HC Wainwright restated a "buy" rating and set a $32.00 target price (up from $30.00) on shares of BioLife Solutions in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Stephens began coverage on BioLife Solutions in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $30.00 price target for the company. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered BioLife Solutions from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, BioLife Solutions presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $31.29.

BioLife Solutions Company Profile

BioLife Solutions, Inc develops, manufactures, and markets bioproduction tools and services for the cell and gene therapy (CGT) industry in the United States, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and internationally. The company's products are used in the basic and applied research, and commercial manufacturing of biologic-based therapies.