Border to Coast Pensions Partnership Ltd Raises Stake in Bio-Techne Corp $TECH

Key Points

• Border to Coast Pensions Partnership Ltd more than doubled its Bio-Techne stake in Q1, buying an additional 255,348 shares to bring its total holding to 510,333 shares valued at about $26.75 million.
• Bio-Techne recently reported mixed earnings: quarterly EPS of $0.53 missed estimates by $0.02, and revenue of $311.42 million also came in below expectations, with sales down 1.5% year over year.
• Analyst views remain divided despite a recent price-target increase from some firms; the stock currently has a consensus rating of Hold with an average price target of $68.07.

Border to Coast Pensions Partnership Ltd boosted its stake in Bio-Techne Corp (NASDAQ:TECH - Free Report) by 100.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 510,333 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after purchasing an additional 255,348 shares during the quarter. Border to Coast Pensions Partnership Ltd owned approximately 0.33% of Bio-Techne worth $26,752,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Impax Asset Management Group plc bought a new stake in Bio-Techne during the 4th quarter worth approximately $11,468,000. Hollow Brook Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Bio-Techne by 69.7% in the 3rd quarter. Hollow Brook Wealth Management LLC now owns 174,677 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $9,717,000 after purchasing an additional 71,739 shares during the period. Cramer Rosenthal Mcglynn LLC boosted its holdings in Bio-Techne by 7.1% in the 3rd quarter. Cramer Rosenthal Mcglynn LLC now owns 559,189 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $31,108,000 after purchasing an additional 37,200 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Bio-Techne by 316.7% during the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 703,477 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $41,373,000 after purchasing an additional 534,676 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Bio-Techne during the 3rd quarter valued at $2,428,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.95% of the company's stock.

Bio-Techne Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:TECH opened at $71.00 on Friday. The company's fifty day moving average price is $52.95 and its 200-day moving average price is $57.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a current ratio of 4.49 and a quick ratio of 3.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 102.90, a PEG ratio of 6.88 and a beta of 1.37. Bio-Techne Corp has a one year low of $43.19 and a one year high of $72.16.

Bio-Techne (NASDAQ:TECH - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The biotechnology company reported $0.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.55 by ($0.02). Bio-Techne had a return on equity of 13.57% and a net margin of 9.05%.The company had revenue of $311.42 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $316.11 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.56 earnings per share. The business's revenue was down 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Bio-Techne Corp will post 1.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bio-Techne Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 18th were paid a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 18th. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. Bio-Techne's payout ratio is 46.38%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on TECH. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Bio-Techne from $76.00 to $62.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Evercore raised Bio-Techne from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on Bio-Techne from $49.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday. William Blair lowered Bio-Techne from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Bio-Techne from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $68.07.

Key Bio-Techne News

Here are the key news stories impacting Bio-Techne this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Merck KGaA’s all-cash buyout offer gives Bio-Techne shareholders a clear takeover price and a premium valuation anchor. Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, Agrees to Acquire Bio-Techne, Strengthening Leadership Position in Fast-Growing Life Sciences Markets
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst actions were mixed but included an upgrade from Evercore to strong-buy and a price-target increase from Baird to $73, reinforcing the view that the shares were moving toward deal value.
• Neutral Sentiment: Unusual call-option activity suggests traders are positioning for further merger-related volatility, but that activity does not change the takeover terms.
• Negative Sentiment: Shareholder-law-firm investigations have begun over whether the Merck deal provides a fair price, which could add some headline risk and scrutiny around the transaction. SHAREHOLDER ALERT: The M&A Class Action Firm Announces An Investigation of Bio-Techne Corporation NASDAQ: TECH

Bio-Techne Profile

Bio-Techne Corporation NASDAQ: TECH is a global life sciences company that develops, manufactures and sells high-quality reagents, instruments and services for the research, diagnostic and bioprocessing markets. Its core product offerings include recombinant proteins, antibodies, immunoassays, nucleic acid probes and kits, single-cell analysis solutions and automated protein analysis systems. Flagship brands such as R&D Systems, Novus Biologicals, ProteinSimple and Advanced Cell Diagnostics provide researchers and clinicians with reliable tools for cell biology, immunology, proteomics and genomics applications.

Headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Bio-Techne serves customers across North America, Europe and the Asia-Pacific region through a combination of direct sales, distributors and strategic partnerships.

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