Bio-Rad Laboratories (NYSE:BIO) Sets New 52-Week Low – Should You Sell?

Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. (NYSE:BIO) hit a new 52-week low during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $235.84 and last traded at $244.29, with a volume of 395196 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $243.00.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $481.00 target price on shares of Bio-Rad Laboratories in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. StockNews.com downgraded Bio-Rad Laboratories from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Bio-Rad Laboratories from $360.00 to $345.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Bio-Rad Laboratories has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $395.20.

Bio-Rad Laboratories Trading Up 0.5 %

The stock has a market cap of $6.84 billion, a PE ratio of -3.76 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a current ratio of 6.48, a quick ratio of 4.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $291.56 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $321.95.

Bio-Rad Laboratories (NYSE:BIO) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The medical research company reported $2.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.86 by $0.04. Bio-Rad Laboratories had a negative net margin of 71.86% and a positive return on equity of 3.90%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. will post 10.81 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Bio-Rad Laboratories

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Bio-Rad Laboratories in the 4th quarter valued at $3,561,000. Lecap Asset Management Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Bio-Rad Laboratories in the fourth quarter worth about $510,000. Verition Fund Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Bio-Rad Laboratories by 193.3% in the 3rd quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 3,470 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,161,000 after acquiring an additional 2,287 shares during the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co purchased a new stake in Bio-Rad Laboratories during the 4th quarter valued at about $958,000. Finally, DAVENPORT & Co LLC grew its position in Bio-Rad Laboratories by 48.8% during the 4th quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 84,677 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $27,817,000 after acquiring an additional 27,780 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 65.24% of the company’s stock.

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.