Bio-Techne Corp (NASDAQ:TECH) Shares Sold by Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc.

Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. lowered its position in shares of Bio-Techne Corp (NASDAQ:TECH - Free Report) by 77.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 30,524 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after selling 105,719 shares during the period. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc.'s holdings in Bio-Techne were worth $1,790,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Bio-Techne in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $137,301,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its holdings in Bio-Techne by 13.1% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 10,654,267 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $767,428,000 after acquiring an additional 1,229,954 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Bio-Techne in the fourth quarter valued at $44,479,000. Select Equity Group L.P. boosted its stake in Bio-Techne by 26.9% during the 4th quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. now owns 2,335,359 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $168,216,000 after acquiring an additional 495,404 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Freestone Grove Partners LP acquired a new position in Bio-Techne during the 4th quarter worth $30,047,000. 98.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Citigroup decreased their price target on Bio-Techne from $80.00 to $70.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. UBS Group reduced their target price on Bio-Techne from $95.00 to $70.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 9th. Benchmark reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $75.00 price target on shares of Bio-Techne in a report on Thursday, June 5th. Wall Street Zen cut Bio-Techne from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, June 8th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on shares of Bio-Techne from $75.00 to $60.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $72.00.

Bio-Techne Stock Performance

Shares of Bio-Techne stock traded down $0.96 during trading on Friday, hitting $51.84. 2,476,035 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,454,080. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 2.58 and a current ratio of 3.71. Bio-Techne Corp has a 12 month low of $46.01 and a 12 month high of $83.62. The stock's fifty day moving average is $49.56 and its 200 day moving average is $60.68. The stock has a market cap of $8.13 billion, a PE ratio of 63.22, a P/E/G ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 1.38.

Bio-Techne (NASDAQ:TECH - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The biotechnology company reported $0.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.51 by $0.05. Bio-Techne had a net margin of 10.89% and a return on equity of 13.17%. The firm had revenue of $316.18 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $317.92 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.48 EPS. Bio-Techne's revenue was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Bio-Techne Corp will post 1.67 EPS for the current year.

Bio-Techne declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Wednesday, May 7th that allows the company to buyback $500.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the biotechnology company to buy up to 6.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Bio-Techne Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 30th. Investors of record on Monday, May 19th were given a $0.08 dividend. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.62%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 19th. Bio-Techne's dividend payout ratio is currently 39.02%.

About Bio-Techne

Bio-Techne Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, develops, manufactures, and sells life science reagents, instruments, and services for the research and clinical diagnostic markets in the United States, the United Kingdom, rest of Europe, Middle East, and Africa, Greater China, rest of Asia-Pacific, and internationally.