Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 2,493 Shares of Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. (NYSE:BIO)

Principal Financial Group Inc. cut its position in shares of Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. (NYSE:BIO) by 8.2% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 27,940 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 2,493 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 0.09% of Bio-Rad Laboratories worth $10,593,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of BIO. Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in Bio-Rad Laboratories in the first quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in Bio-Rad Laboratories by 138.2% in the first quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 81 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Atlas Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Bio-Rad Laboratories in the second quarter valued at approximately $50,000. Pacific Center for Financial Services bought a new position in Bio-Rad Laboratories in the first quarter valued at approximately $49,000. Finally, Clearstead Advisors LLC bought a new position in Bio-Rad Laboratories in the first quarter valued at approximately $57,000. 63.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Bio-Rad Laboratories news, EVP Timothy S. Ernst sold 2,350 shares of Bio-Rad Laboratories stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $395.60, for a total value of $929,660.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 2,416 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $955,769.60. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Bio-Rad Laboratories news, EVP Timothy S. Ernst sold 300 shares of Bio-Rad Laboratories stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $384.69, for a total value of $115,407.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 2,416 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $929,411.04. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Timothy S. Ernst sold 2,350 shares of Bio-Rad Laboratories stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $395.60, for a total value of $929,660.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 2,416 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $955,769.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 17.06% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Bio-Rad Laboratories Stock Performance

NYSE:BIO opened at $299.36 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $8.73 billion, a P/E ratio of -51.17 and a beta of 0.91. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $329.40 and a 200 day simple moving average of $365.60. The company has a current ratio of 5.64, a quick ratio of 4.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. has a 1-year low of $261.59 and a 1-year high of $509.62.

Bio-Rad Laboratories (NYSE:BIO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 26th. The medical research company reported $2.33 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.87 by ($0.54). The firm had revenue of $632.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $689.50 million. Bio-Rad Laboratories had a positive return on equity of 3.91% and a negative net margin of 5.86%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.60 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. will post 11.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BIO has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on Bio-Rad Laboratories from $522.00 to $524.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 4th. StockNews.com downgraded Bio-Rad Laboratories from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 30th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Bio-Rad Laboratories from $550.00 to $525.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 7th. Finally, Credit Suisse Group reduced their target price on Bio-Rad Laboratories from $580.00 to $550.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Bio-Rad Laboratories presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $533.00.

Bio-Rad Laboratories Company Profile

Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc manufactures, and distributes life science research and clinical diagnostic products in the United States, Europe, Asia, Canada, and Latin America. The company operates through Life Science and Clinical Diagnostics segments. The Life Science segment develops, manufactures, and markets reagents, apparatus, and laboratory instruments that are used in research techniques, biopharmaceutical production processes, and food testing regimes.