Citigroup Inc. Has $17.76 Million Stake in Bio-Techne Corp (NASDAQ:TECH)

Citigroup Inc. increased its stake in shares of Bio-Techne Corp (NASDAQ:TECH - Free Report) by 131.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 302,927 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after buying an additional 171,863 shares during the quarter. Citigroup Inc. owned 0.19% of Bio-Techne worth $17,761,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in Bio-Techne by 6.5% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 15,665 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $1,128,000 after purchasing an additional 953 shares during the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC raised its position in Bio-Techne by 55.5% in the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 9,206 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $663,000 after purchasing an additional 3,285 shares during the last quarter. Synovus Financial Corp raised its position in Bio-Techne by 35.9% in the 4th quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 17,971 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $1,295,000 after purchasing an additional 4,748 shares during the last quarter. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan bought a new position in Bio-Techne in the 4th quarter valued at $228,000. Finally, Farringdon Capital Ltd. bought a new position in Bio-Techne in the 4th quarter valued at $299,000. Institutional investors own 98.95% of the company's stock.

Bio-Techne Trading Down 0.3%

TECH stock traded down $0.14 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $53.60. 1,305,889 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,545,885. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $52.72 and its 200-day moving average price is $55.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 2.38 and a current ratio of 3.46. The company has a market cap of $8.40 billion, a PE ratio of 116.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 1.40. Bio-Techne Corp has a one year low of $46.01 and a one year high of $80.95.

Bio-Techne (NASDAQ:TECH - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The biotechnology company reported $0.53 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.50 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $316.96 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $315.14 million. Bio-Techne had a return on equity of 13.43% and a net margin of 6.02%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.49 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Bio-Techne Corp will post 1.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bio-Techne declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share 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 reacquire up to 6.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Bio-Techne Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Benchmark reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $75.00 target price on shares of Bio-Techne in a research note on Thursday, June 5th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on Bio-Techne from $75.00 to $60.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. TD Cowen assumed coverage on Bio-Techne in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $65.00 target price for the company. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their target price on Bio-Techne from $63.00 to $61.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, Scotiabank decreased their price objective on Bio-Techne from $90.00 to $75.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Bio-Techne has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus 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.