SVB Wealth LLC Boosts Stock Position in Bio-Techne Corp $TECH

Key Points

• SVB Wealth LLC increased its ownership in Bio-Techne Corp by 85.5%, acquiring a total of 42,403 shares, valued at approximately $2.49 million.
• Institutional investors own 98.95% of Bio-Techne's stock, with several key players, including Price T Rowe Associates Inc. and Ameriprise Financial Inc., significantly increasing their holdings in the company.
• Bio-Techne reported a net income of $0.53 EPS for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations, while also announcing a $500 million stock buyback program and a quarterly dividend of $0.08 per share.

SVB Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in Bio-Techne Corp (NASDAQ:TECH - Free Report) by 85.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 42,403 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after buying an additional 19,547 shares during the period. SVB Wealth LLC's holdings in Bio-Techne were worth $2,486,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in Bio-Techne by 17.9% in the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 19,630 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $1,153,000 after buying an additional 2,980 shares during the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas acquired a new stake in Bio-Techne in the 1st quarter worth about $1,362,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of Bio-Techne by 3,534.0% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 105,241 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $6,170,000 after purchasing an additional 102,345 shares in the last quarter. CX Institutional acquired a new position in shares of Bio-Techne in the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. Finally, State of Alaska Department of Revenue lifted its stake in shares of Bio-Techne by 2.2% in the 1st quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 18,524 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $1,086,000 after purchasing an additional 405 shares in the last quarter. 98.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Bio-Techne Stock Down 1.0%

NASDAQ TECH traded down $0.57 on Wednesday, reaching $56.22. The company had a trading volume of 1,813,940 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,035,942. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.81 billion, a PE ratio of 122.22, a P/E/G ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 1.40. Bio-Techne Corp has a 1 year low of $46.01 and a 1 year high of $80.95. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $53.34 and a 200-day moving average of $54.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 3.46 and a quick ratio of 2.38.

Bio-Techne (NASDAQ:TECH - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The biotechnology company reported $0.53 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.50 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $316.96 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $315.14 million. Bio-Techne had a return on equity of 13.43% and a net margin of 6.02%.Bio-Techne's quarterly revenue was up 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.49 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Bio-Techne Corp will post 1.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bio-Techne announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, May 7th that allows the company to buyback $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the biotechnology company to repurchase up to 6.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Bio-Techne Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 18th. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. Bio-Techne's payout ratio is currently 69.57%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on TECH shares. Wall Street Zen lowered Bio-Techne from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, June 8th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Bio-Techne from $95.00 to $70.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Scotiabank reduced their price objective on Bio-Techne from $90.00 to $75.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Benchmark reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $75.00 price objective on shares of Bio-Techne in a research note on Thursday, June 5th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on Bio-Techne from $75.00 to $60.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $69.42.

Bio-Techne Company Profile

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.