BioLife Solutions (NASDAQ:BLFS) Trading 15.7% Higher on Better-Than-Expected Earnings

BioLife Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:BLFS)’s stock price shot up 15.7% on Friday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The company traded as high as $20.88 and last traded at $20.83. 300,857 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 27% from the average session volume of 409,936 shares. The stock had previously closed at $18.01.

The medical equipment provider reported ($0.19) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.25) by $0.06. BioLife Solutions had a negative return on equity of 13.36% and a negative net margin of 46.37%. The business had revenue of $31.73 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $29.30 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.27) EPS.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on BioLife Solutions in a report on Thursday, April 4th. They set a “buy” rating and a $22.00 target price for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, BioLife Solutions has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $23.40.

Insider Buying and Selling at BioLife Solutions

In other BioLife Solutions news, insider Sarah Aebersold sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.65, for a total value of $70,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 65,843 shares in the company, valued at $1,162,128.95. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, CEO Greef Roderick De sold 7,249 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.60, for a total value of $120,333.40. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 461,854 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,666,776.40. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Sarah Aebersold sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.65, for a total value of $70,600.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 65,843 shares in the company, valued at $1,162,128.95. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 33,996 shares of company stock worth $562,145. 2.70% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On BioLife Solutions

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in BioLife Solutions by 167.2% in the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,630 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 1,020 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC bought a new position in BioLife Solutions in the fourth quarter valued at about $41,000. Register Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in BioLife Solutions in the first quarter valued at about $96,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in BioLife Solutions by 88.4% in the third quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 11,346 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $157,000 after acquiring an additional 5,324 shares during the period. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in BioLife Solutions by 8.1% in the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 15,622 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $216,000 after acquiring an additional 1,164 shares during the period. 93.24% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

BioLife Solutions Stock Performance

The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $17.45 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $15.83. The company has a quick ratio of 1.83, a current ratio of 2.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The company has a market cap of $906 million, a P/E ratio of -13.17 and a beta of 1.69.

About BioLife Solutions

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.