StockNews.com Upgrades Bio-Rad Laboratories (NYSE:BIO) to “Buy”

Bio-Rad Laboratories (NYSE:BIO) was upgraded by StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued on Friday.

A number of other equities analysts also recently commented on BIO. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on Bio-Rad Laboratories in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $340.00 target price for the company. Citigroup upped their target price on Bio-Rad Laboratories from $400.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Bio-Rad Laboratories from $446.00 to $469.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $391.80.

Bio-Rad Laboratories Price Performance

BIO traded up $10.23 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $368.42. The stock had a trading volume of 284,333 shares, compared to its average volume of 249,020. The company has a market cap of $10.27 billion, a P/E ratio of -13.48 and a beta of 0.95. The business has a fifty day moving average of $333.99 and a 200 day moving average of $308.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 4.63 and a current ratio of 6.28. Bio-Rad Laboratories has a 1 year low of $262.12 and a 1 year high of $372.27.

Bio-Rad Laboratories (NYSE:BIO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The medical research company reported $2.01 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.73. Bio-Rad Laboratories had a positive return on equity of 3.66% and a negative net margin of 30.18%. The firm had revenue of $649.70 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $628.18 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.33 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Bio-Rad Laboratories will post 9.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Bio-Rad Laboratories

In other Bio-Rad Laboratories news, COO Andrew J. Last sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $329.94, for a total value of $989,820.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 7,559 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,494,016.46. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, EVP James Barry sold 623 shares of Bio-Rad Laboratories stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $330.49, for a total value of $205,895.27. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 147 shares in the company, valued at approximately $48,582.03. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, COO Andrew J. Last sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $329.94, for a total value of $989,820.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 7,559 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,494,016.46. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 17.06% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Bio-Rad Laboratories

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Van ECK Associates Corp purchased a new position in Bio-Rad Laboratories during the 2nd quarter worth $180,040,000. First Eagle Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Bio-Rad Laboratories by 32,296.9% during the second quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 636,275 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $173,773,000 after acquiring an additional 634,311 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Bio-Rad Laboratories by 64.4% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 494,604 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $135,081,000 after acquiring an additional 193,700 shares during the last quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. raised its holdings in shares of Bio-Rad Laboratories by 26.2% during the second quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. now owns 649,522 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $177,391,000 after acquiring an additional 134,856 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Earnest Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Bio-Rad Laboratories by 30.8% in the first quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 514,906 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $178,091,000 after purchasing an additional 121,272 shares in the last quarter. 65.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Bio-Rad Laboratories

Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc manufactures and distributes life science research and clinical diagnostic products in the United States, Europe, Asia, Canada, and Latin America. It operates through two segments, Life Science and Clinical Diagnostics. The company develops, manufactures, and markets instruments, systems, reagents, and consumables to separate, purify, characterize, and quantitate biological materials such as cells, proteins, and nucleic acids for proteomics, genomics, biopharmaceutical production, cellular biology, and food safety markets.