Royal Bank of Canada Purchases 66,010 Shares of BioLife Solutions, Inc. $BLFS

Key Points

• Royal Bank of Canada increased its BioLife Solutions stake by 8.1%, purchasing 66,010 shares to hold 885,298 shares worth approximately $16.9 million. Institutional investors collectively own 93.24% of BLFS.
• Major shareholder Casdin Partners Master Fund sold 650,000 shares for $15.4 million, while insiders have sold 1.2 million shares worth $28.1 million over the past quarter.
• BioLife Solutions reported quarterly EPS of $0.04, exceeding estimates by $0.01, and revenue of $28.47 million. Despite the earnings beat, analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating with a $31.38 target price, below the stock’s $33.93 price.

Royal Bank of Canada raised its position in BioLife Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:BLFS - Free Report) by 8.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 885,298 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock after buying an additional 66,010 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada owned 1.81% of BioLife Solutions worth $16,891,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its holdings in shares of BioLife Solutions by 2.7% during the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 20,764 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $447,000 after buying an additional 555 shares in the last quarter. Isthmus Partners LLC grew its position in BioLife Solutions by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Isthmus Partners LLC now owns 138,393 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $3,346,000 after acquiring an additional 622 shares during the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its holdings in BioLife Solutions by 2.6% during the 2nd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 27,278 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $588,000 after purchasing an additional 702 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP increased its holdings in BioLife Solutions by 50.9% during the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 2,113 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 713 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC increased its holdings in BioLife Solutions by 2.9% during the 3rd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 27,698 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $707,000 after purchasing an additional 783 shares in the last quarter. 93.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other BioLife Solutions news, major shareholder Casdin Partners Master Fund, L sold 650,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.70, for a total transaction of $15,405,000.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 4,757,165 shares of the company's stock, valued at $112,744,810.50. The trade was a 12.02% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 1,200,000 shares of company stock worth $28,125,000. Insiders own 2.20% of the company's stock.

BioLife Solutions Stock Up 0.4%

NASDAQ BLFS opened at $33.93 on Friday. The firm's 50 day moving average is $28.40 and its 200-day moving average is $24.00. The company has a market capitalization of $1.66 billion, a PE ratio of -424.07 and a beta of 1.93. BioLife Solutions, Inc. has a 12-month low of $17.86 and a 12-month high of $34.34.

BioLife Solutions (NASDAQ:BLFS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The medical equipment provider reported $0.04 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.03 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $28.47 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $27.80 million. BioLife Solutions had a negative net margin of 2.80% and a positive return on equity of 1.81%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that BioLife Solutions, Inc. will post 0.03 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on BLFS shares. William Blair set a $31.00 target price on shares of BioLife Solutions in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Zacks Research upgraded shares of BioLife Solutions from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. Wall Street Zen lowered BioLife Solutions from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, July 25th. HC Wainwright cut shares of BioLife Solutions from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and reduced their price target for the company from $32.00 to $31.00 in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, TD Cowen downgraded BioLife Solutions from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and dropped their price target for the company from $33.00 to $31.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $31.38.

BioLife Solutions Company Profile

BioLife Solutions NASDAQ: BLFS specializes in biopreservation and cold chain workflow solutions for cell and gene therapies, regenerative medicine and other advanced biologics. The company develops and markets proprietary cryopreservation media and technology platforms designed to maintain cell viability and functionality during processing, storage and transport. BioLife's product portfolio addresses critical steps in the manufacturing and distribution of cell-based products, helping life science researchers and biopharmaceutical manufacturers protect and preserve living cells.

The company's flagship offerings include CryoStor, a family of serum-free cryopreservation media; HypoThermosol, a hypothermic storage solution for short-term cell and tissue preservation; and the ThawSTAR system, an automated cell thawing instrument that delivers controlled and reproducible warming of frozen cell therapies.

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