Franklin Resources Inc. Trims Stock Position in BioLife Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:BLFS)

Franklin Resources Inc. decreased its position in shares of BioLife Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:BLFS) by 11.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 24,618 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after selling 3,093 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. owned approximately 0.05% of BioLife Solutions worth $577,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Stifel Financial Corp raised its position in BioLife Solutions by 5.4% in the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 12,988 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $325,000 after purchasing an additional 670 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in BioLife Solutions by 29.4% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,295 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $83,000 after purchasing an additional 748 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its holdings in shares of BioLife Solutions by 5.8% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 13,825 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $296,000 after buying an additional 753 shares during the last quarter. Mark Sheptoff Financial Planning LLC acquired a new stake in shares of BioLife Solutions during the third quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Curi RMB Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of BioLife Solutions by 0.5% during the third quarter. Curi RMB Capital LLC now owns 421,933 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $10,565,000 after buying an additional 2,283 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.24% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have commented on BLFS. TD Cowen upped their price objective on BioLife Solutions from $28.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $30.00 price target on shares of BioLife Solutions in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Craig Hallum boosted their price objective on shares of BioLife Solutions from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. HC Wainwright reduced their target price on shares of BioLife Solutions from $29.00 to $27.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Finally, KeyCorp boosted their price target on shares of BioLife Solutions from $30.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, BioLife Solutions presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $29.00.

Insider Activity at BioLife Solutions

In related news, EVP Aby J. Mathew sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.17, for a total value of $529,250.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 302,046 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,394,313.82. This represents a 7.64 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders sold 64,259 shares of company stock valued at $1,424,708 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 2.20% of the company’s stock.

BioLife Solutions Trading Down 1.2 %

Shares of BioLife Solutions stock opened at $26.27 on Tuesday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $25.28 and a two-hundred day moving average of $23.95. BioLife Solutions, Inc. has a 12-month low of $14.50 and a 12-month high of $28.88. The company has a current ratio of 2.78, a quick ratio of 1.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The stock has a market cap of $1.22 billion, a PE ratio of -24.78 and a beta of 1.91.

BioLife Solutions Company Profile

BioLife Solutions, Inc develops, manufactures, and markets bioproduction tools and services for the cell and gene therapy (CGT) industry in the United States, 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.