Bio-Techne Co. (NASDAQ:TECH) Shares Sold by QRG Capital Management Inc.

QRG Capital Management Inc. cut its position in shares of Bio-Techne Co. (NASDAQ:TECH) by 2.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 10,245 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 204 shares during the quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Bio-Techne were worth $738,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Proficio Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in Bio-Techne by 8,079.6% during the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 242,525 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $17,469,000 after acquiring an additional 239,560 shares during the period. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd bought a new position in shares of Bio-Techne during the 4th quarter valued at about $230,000. Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc. CT grew its stake in shares of Bio-Techne by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc. CT now owns 10,799 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $778,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares during the last quarter. ING Groep NV bought a new stake in shares of Bio-Techne in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,462,000. Finally, New York State Common Retirement Fund lifted its stake in Bio-Techne by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 544,058 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $39,188,000 after purchasing an additional 22,145 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 98.95% of the company’s stock.

Bio-Techne Trading Down 1.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ TECH opened at $60.12 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 3.94, a quick ratio of 2.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. Bio-Techne Co. has a one year low of $58.98 and a one year high of $85.57. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $71.46 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $72.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.50 billion, a PE ratio of 60.73, a PEG ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 1.27.

Bio-Techne (NASDAQ:TECH) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The biotechnology company reported $0.35 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.38 by ($0.03). Bio-Techne had a return on equity of 12.73% and a net margin of 13.22%. As a group, analysts predict that Bio-Techne Co. will post 1.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bio-Techne Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 17th were issued a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. Bio-Techne’s dividend payout ratio is currently 32.32%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

TECH has been the topic of several recent research reports. Scotiabank lifted their price target on shares of Bio-Techne from $88.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. KeyCorp lifted their target price on Bio-Techne from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Citigroup reduced their target price on Bio-Techne from $80.00 to $70.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Baird R W cut Bio-Techne from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lowered shares of Bio-Techne from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $88.00 to $68.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $82.14.

Insider Transactions at Bio-Techne

In other Bio-Techne news, Director Amy E. Herr sold 1,860 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.96, for a total value of $122,685.60. Following the transaction, the director now owns 1,976 shares in the company, valued at $130,336.96. The trade was a 48.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Kim Kelderman sold 13,392 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.29, for a total value of $1,035,067.68. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 39,004 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,014,619.16. This trade represents a 25.56 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 3.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.