BioLife Solutions (NASDAQ:BLFS) Shares Gap Down - Here's Why

Key Points

• Shares gapped down — BLFS opened at $21.80 after closing at $23.12 and last traded near $21.39 (volume ~138,223), reflecting an early sell-off.
• Analyst view: Moderate Buy — the consensus rating is "Moderate Buy" with a $32 price target; analyst mix includes 1 Strong Buy, 3 Buy and 1 Sell, and recent upgrades from Zacks and Wall Street Zen.
• Mixed fundamentals and insider selling — the company beat quarterly estimates (EPS $0.02 vs. $0.01; revenue $27.5M vs. $25.66M) but still has a negative net margin (-4.5%), and insider Karen A. Foster sold 96,923 shares, reducing her stake by ~46%.

Shares of BioLife Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:BLFS - Get Free Report) gapped down before the market opened on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $23.12, but opened at $21.80. BioLife Solutions shares last traded at $21.3860, with a volume of 138,223 shares.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Zacks Research raised BioLife Solutions from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Wall Street Zen raised BioLife Solutions from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, February 28th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of BioLife Solutions in a research report on Monday, April 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $32.00.

BioLife Solutions Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $1.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -197.43 and a beta of 1.97. The company has a 50-day moving average of $20.36 and a 200-day moving average of $23.34.

BioLife Solutions (NASDAQ:BLFS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The medical equipment provider reported $0.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.01 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $27.50 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $25.66 million. BioLife Solutions had a positive return on equity of 1.71% and a negative net margin of 4.50%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that BioLife Solutions, Inc. will post 0.09 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at BioLife Solutions

In related news, insider Karen A. Foster sold 96,923 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.15, for a total value of $1,952,998.45. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 113,742 shares in the company, valued at $2,291,901.30. This trade represents a 46.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 99,641 shares of company stock valued at $2,009,000. Insiders own 2.20% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On BioLife Solutions

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Global Retirement Partners LLC acquired a new stake in BioLife Solutions in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new stake in BioLife Solutions in the fourth quarter valued at about $35,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. lifted its position in BioLife Solutions by 54.1% in the third quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,877 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 659 shares during the period. Quarry LP lifted its position in BioLife Solutions by 50.9% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 2,113 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 713 shares during the period. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its position in BioLife Solutions by 82.0% in the third quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 4,425 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $113,000 after purchasing an additional 1,994 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.24% of the company's stock.

BioLife Solutions Company Profile

BioLife Solutions NASDAQ: BLFS specializes in biopreservation and cold chain workflow solutions for cell and gene therapies, regenerative medicine and other advanced biologics. The company develops and markets proprietary cryopreservation media and technology platforms designed to maintain cell viability and functionality during processing, storage and transport. BioLife's product portfolio addresses critical steps in the manufacturing and distribution of cell-based products, helping life science researchers and biopharmaceutical manufacturers protect and preserve living cells.

The company's flagship offerings include CryoStor, a family of serum-free cryopreservation media; HypoThermosol, a hypothermic storage solution for short-term cell and tissue preservation; and the ThawSTAR system, an automated cell thawing instrument that delivers controlled and reproducible warming of frozen cell therapies.

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.