BioLife Solutions (NASDAQ:BLFS) Upgraded to “Hold” by Zacks Investment Research

Zacks Investment Research upgraded shares of BioLife Solutions (NASDAQ:BLFS – Get Rating) from a strong sell rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Tuesday, Zacks.com reports.

According to Zacks, “BioLife Solutions has pioneered the next generation of preservation solutions designed to maintain the viability and health of cellular matter and tissues during freezing, transportation and storage. Based on their proprietary bio-packaging technology and a patented understanding of the mechanism of cellular damage and death, these products enable the biotechnology and medical community to address a growing problem that exists today. “

BLFS has been the topic of several other reports. TheStreet lowered shares of BioLife Solutions from a c- rating to a d rating in a report on Tuesday, April 12th. B. Riley lowered their price objective on shares of BioLife Solutions from $67.00 to $48.00 in a research report on Wednesday, March 2nd. Oppenheimer raised shares of BioLife Solutions from a market perform rating to an outperform rating in a research report on Monday, April 25th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of BioLife Solutions to a sell rating in a research report on Friday, March 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of Buy and an average target price of $58.50.

BLFS opened at $13.33 on Tuesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $20.29. The company has a current ratio of 3.12, a quick ratio of 2.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $561.13 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -63.47 and a beta of 2.01. BioLife Solutions has a twelve month low of $12.13 and a twelve month high of $60.67.

BioLife Solutions (NASDAQ:BLFS – Get Rating) last posted its earnings results on Monday, February 28th. The medical equipment provider reported ($0.32) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the Thomson Reuters’ consensus estimate of ($0.07) by ($0.25). The firm had revenue of $37.30 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $37.28 million. BioLife Solutions had a negative return on equity of 5.19% and a negative net margin of 7.04%. During the same quarter last year, the business posted ($0.01) earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that BioLife Solutions will post -0.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

In related news, CMO Todd Berard sold 13,581 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.59, for a total transaction of $238,889.79. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 108,992 shares in the company, valued at $1,917,169.28. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Michael Rice sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.80, for a total value of $238,000.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 168,090 shares of company stock worth $3,383,342. 5.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its stake in BioLife Solutions by 26.5% in the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 512,871 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $19,113,000 after buying an additional 107,584 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board bought a new stake in BioLife Solutions in the third quarter valued at approximately $2,487,000. BlackRock Inc. raised its stake in BioLife Solutions by 122.9% in the third quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 4,228,452 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $178,947,000 after buying an additional 2,331,680 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of BioLife Solutions in the third quarter valued at approximately $1,282,000. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC acquired a new position in shares of BioLife Solutions in the third quarter valued at approximately $2,819,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.48% of the company’s stock.

About BioLife Solutions (Get Rating)

BioLife Solutions, Inc develops, manufactures, and supplies bioproduction tools and services for the cell and gene therapy industry in the United States, Canada, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and internationally. The company’s products are used in the basic and applied research, and commercial manufacturing of biologic-based therapies.

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