Bio-Rad Laboratories (NYSE:BIO) Shares Gap Up – Still a Buy?

Shares of Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. (NYSE:BIO) gapped up before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $329.79, but opened at $345.00. Bio-Rad Laboratories shares last traded at $345.98, with a volume of 33,196 shares traded.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have weighed in on BIO. StockNews.com lowered shares of Bio-Rad Laboratories from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Citigroup raised shares of Bio-Rad Laboratories from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $350.00 to $400.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on shares of Bio-Rad Laboratories in a research note on Tuesday, August 27th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $340.00 target price for the company. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $401.00 price objective on shares of Bio-Rad Laboratories in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Bio-Rad Laboratories currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $368.20.

Bio-Rad Laboratories Trading Up 4.9 %

The company’s fifty day moving average is $329.64 and its two-hundred day moving average is $306.99. The stock has a market cap of $9.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -31.85 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a quick ratio of 4.63, a current ratio of 6.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18.

Bio-Rad Laboratories (NYSE:BIO) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The medical research company reported $3.11 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.12 by $0.99. Bio-Rad Laboratories had a negative net margin of 51.73% and a positive return on equity of 3.77%. The firm had revenue of $638.50 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $645.79 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.00 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. will post 9.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Bio-Rad Laboratories

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in BIO. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its position in shares of Bio-Rad Laboratories by 140.6% in the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 77 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC lifted its holdings in Bio-Rad Laboratories by 193.8% in the 2nd quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 94 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC purchased a new position in Bio-Rad Laboratories in the 1st quarter valued at about $38,000. EntryPoint Capital LLC purchased a new position in Bio-Rad Laboratories in the 1st quarter valued at about $51,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new position in Bio-Rad Laboratories in the 2nd quarter valued at about $51,000. 65.24% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.