BioLife Solutions (NASDAQ:BLFS) Trading Up 9.2% - Should You Buy?

BioLife Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:BLFS - Get Free Report)'s stock price traded up 9.2% during trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $23.28 and last traded at $23.47. 216,157 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 45% from the average session volume of 393,166 shares. The stock had previously closed at $21.50.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of BioLife Solutions from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. HC Wainwright reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $30.00 price target on shares of BioLife Solutions in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and six have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, BioLife Solutions presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $31.17.

BioLife Solutions Trading Up 0.5%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 1.78 and a current ratio of 2.78. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $22.58 and its 200-day simple moving average is $25.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.13 billion, a PE ratio of -22.49 and a beta of 1.82.

BioLife Solutions (NASDAQ:BLFS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The medical equipment provider reported $0.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.03) by $0.07. The business had revenue of $23.94 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.22 million. BioLife Solutions had a negative net margin of 38.98% and a negative return on equity of 6.61%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that BioLife Solutions, Inc. will post -0.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at BioLife Solutions

In other news, CFO Troy Wichterman sold 4,151 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.00, for a total value of $103,775.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 116,809 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,920,225. This represents a 3.43% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Sarah Aebersold sold 5,771 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.66, for a total transaction of $130,770.86. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 80,094 shares in the company, valued at $1,814,930.04. This represents a 6.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 71,756 shares of company stock valued at $1,660,535. 2.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of BioLife Solutions

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of BLFS. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of BioLife Solutions in the 1st quarter worth about $30,789,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in BioLife Solutions during the 4th quarter valued at about $20,664,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA purchased a new stake in BioLife Solutions during the 4th quarter valued at about $19,805,000. Royal Bank of Canada grew its position in BioLife Solutions by 762.8% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 698,251 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $15,948,000 after purchasing an additional 617,320 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. purchased a new stake in BioLife Solutions during the 4th quarter valued at about $11,113,000. 93.24% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About BioLife Solutions

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.