Nuveen LLC Makes New Investment in Bio-Techne Corp $TECH

Nuveen LLC bought a new position in Bio-Techne Corp (NASDAQ:TECH) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 126,153 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,396,000. Nuveen LLC owned about 0.08% of Bio-Techne at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its position in Bio-Techne by 7.2% in the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 4,702,942 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $338,756,000 after purchasing an additional 317,349 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its position in Bio-Techne by 9.7% in the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,190,115 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $245,666,000 after purchasing an additional 369,651 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its position in Bio-Techne by 18.5% in the 1st quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 3,025,409 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $177,380,000 after purchasing an additional 472,847 shares during the last quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. increased its position in Bio-Techne by 26.9% in the 4th quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. now owns 2,335,359 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $168,216,000 after purchasing an additional 495,404 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brown Advisory Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Bio-Techne by 45.7% during the 1st quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 1,912,377 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $112,123,000 after acquiring an additional 599,982 shares in the last quarter. 98.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the company. TD Cowen assumed coverage on Bio-Techne in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. They set a “buy” rating and a $65.00 price target for the company. Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on Bio-Techne in a research note on Friday, May 30th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $59.00 price target for the company. Stephens upgraded Bio-Techne to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $65.00 price target for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Citigroup upgraded Bio-Techne from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $55.00 to $70.00 in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price target on Bio-Techne from $63.00 to $61.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $69.42.

Bio-Techne Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:TECH opened at $57.09 on Monday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $53.10 and a 200 day moving average price of $54.51. Bio-Techne Corp has a twelve month low of $46.01 and a twelve month high of $80.95. The company has a market cap of $8.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 124.11, a PEG ratio of 3.64 and a beta of 1.40. The company has a quick ratio of 2.38, a current ratio of 3.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18.

Bio-Techne (NASDAQ:TECH) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The biotechnology company reported $0.53 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.50 by $0.03. Bio-Techne had a return on equity of 13.43% and a net margin of 6.02%.The firm had revenue of $316.96 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $315.14 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.49 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Bio-Techne Corp will post 1.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Bio-Techne announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, May 7th that allows the company to buyback $500.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the biotechnology company to reacquire up to 6.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Bio-Techne Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Investors of record on Monday, August 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 18th. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. Bio-Techne’s dividend payout ratio is presently 69.57%.

Bio-Techne 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.