Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH Grows Position in Bio-Techne Corp (NASDAQ:TECH)

Key Points

• Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH increased its stake in Bio-Techne Corp by 54.1%, owning approximately $5.12 million worth of shares.
• Wall Street analysts have mixed opinions on Bio-Techne, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $69.58.
• Bio-Techne recently approved a $500 million share buyback plan, indicating that the board believes its shares are undervalued.

Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH lifted its stake in shares of Bio-Techne Corp (NASDAQ:TECH - Free Report) by 54.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 87,336 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after acquiring an additional 30,670 shares during the quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH owned approximately 0.06% of Bio-Techne worth $5,121,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. CX Institutional acquired a new stake in Bio-Techne in the first quarter valued at approximately $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 acquired a new stake in Bio-Techne in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Horizon Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in Bio-Techne in the first quarter valued at approximately $69,000. Finally, Whipplewood Advisors LLC grew its stake in Bio-Techne by 30,250.0% in the first quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 1,214 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $71,000 after acquiring an additional 1,210 shares during the period. 98.95% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. TD Cowen initiated coverage on Bio-Techne in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $65.00 price objective for the company. Scotiabank cut their price objective on Bio-Techne from $90.00 to $75.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price objective on 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. Wall Street Zen cut Bio-Techne from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, June 8th. Finally, UBS Group cut their price objective on Bio-Techne from $95.00 to $70.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Bio-Techne has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $69.58.

Bio-Techne Stock Down 1.9%

TECH stock traded down $1.08 on Thursday, reaching $56.63. 806,382 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,009,023. Bio-Techne Corp has a one year low of $46.01 and a one year high of $83.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 3.71 and a quick ratio of 2.58. The company has a market cap of $8.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 68.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 1.39. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $51.38 and a 200-day simple moving average of $57.35.

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

Bio-Techne Announces Dividend

The firm 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.57%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 19th. Bio-Techne's payout ratio is 39.02%.

Bio-Techne declared that its board has initiated a share buyback program on Wednesday, May 7th that permits the company to repurchase $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the biotechnology company to purchase up to 6.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

About Bio-Techne

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.