Bio-Techne Corp (NASDAQ:TECH) Shares Bought by Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC

Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Bio-Techne Corp (NASDAQ:TECH - Free Report) by 3.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 329,152 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after purchasing an additional 10,030 shares during the period. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.21% of Bio-Techne worth $19,298,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. CX Institutional acquired a new position in Bio-Techne in the 1st quarter worth about $27,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new stake in Bio-Techne in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $41,000. GeoWealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Bio-Techne in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Bio-Techne by 30,250.0% during the 1st quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 1,214 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $71,000 after buying an additional 1,210 shares during the period. Finally, Huntington National Bank lifted its position in shares of Bio-Techne by 42.6% during the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 1,078 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $78,000 after buying an additional 322 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.95% of the company's stock.

Bio-Techne Price Performance

NASDAQ TECH traded down $0.24 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $49.89. 2,577,392 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,428,223. The company has a market capitalization of $7.82 billion, a PE ratio of 60.84, a PEG ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 3.71 and a quick ratio of 2.58. Bio-Techne Corp has a 52-week low of $46.01 and a 52-week high of $83.62. The firm's 50-day moving average is $49.53 and its 200-day moving average is $61.52.

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

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

Bio-Techne Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 19th were issued a $0.08 dividend. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.64%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 19th. Bio-Techne's payout ratio is currently 39.02%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Evercore ISI initiated coverage on shares of Bio-Techne in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $75.00 price target for the company. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their target price on shares of Bio-Techne from $72.00 to $63.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on shares of Bio-Techne in a research report on Friday, May 30th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $59.00 price target for the company. KeyCorp reaffirmed a "sector weight" rating on shares of Bio-Techne in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Bio-Techne from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, June 8th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $72.00.

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.