BioLife Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:BLFS) Receives Average Rating of “Hold” from Brokerages

Shares of BioLife Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:BLFS) have received a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the nine research firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $31.4286.

Several research firms recently weighed in on BLFS. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of BioLife Solutions in a report on Friday, July 17th. Maxim Group downgraded BioLife Solutions from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. HC Wainwright lowered shares of BioLife Solutions from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $32.00 to $31.00 in a research report on Thursday. William Blair set a $31.00 target price on shares of BioLife Solutions in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of BioLife Solutions from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and upped their price target for the company from $30.00 to $31.00 in a report on Thursday.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, major shareholder Casdin Partners Master Fund, L sold 650,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.70, for a total transaction of $15,405,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 4,757,165 shares in the company, valued at $112,744,810.50. This represents a 12.02% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 1,200,000 shares of company stock worth $28,125,000. 2.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BioLife Solutions

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in BioLife Solutions by 27.4% in the fourth quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,180,824 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $125,273,000 after acquiring an additional 1,113,972 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in BioLife Solutions by 9.2% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,932,191 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $95,080,000 after acquiring an additional 332,747 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of BioLife Solutions by 4.0% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,087,386 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $74,653,000 after acquiring an additional 119,868 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of BioLife Solutions by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,505,593 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $36,405,000 after acquiring an additional 49,028 shares during the period. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of BioLife Solutions by 11.3% during the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 1,080,371 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $23,271,000 after acquiring an additional 109,959 shares during the period. 93.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

BioLife Solutions Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ BLFS opened at $29.98 on Wednesday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $26.94 and a 200 day simple moving average of $23.53. BioLife Solutions has a 52 week low of $17.86 and a 52 week high of $32.23. The stock has a market cap of $1.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -374.70 and a beta of 1.94.

BioLife Solutions (NASDAQ:BLFS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The medical equipment provider reported $0.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.01 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $27.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $25.66 million. BioLife Solutions had a negative net margin of 2.80% and a positive return on equity of 1.81%. On average, analysts predict that BioLife Solutions will post 0.03 EPS for the current year.

Key Stories Impacting BioLife Solutions

Here are the key news stories impacting BioLife Solutions this week:

• Positive Sentiment: HC Wainwright reiterated a Neutral rating and a $31 price target while forecasting modest earnings growth for BioLife Solutions through 2027, which suggests analysts still see some upside from current levels. HC Wainwright earnings estimates and rating for BioLife Solutions
• Neutral Sentiment: Repligen’s planned acquisition of BioLife Solutions is being framed as strategically positive for Repligen’s cell therapy business, and the deal could provide a clear exit value for BLFS shareholders if completed. Zacks article on Repligen buying BioLife Solutions
• Negative Sentiment: Maxim Group downgraded BioLife Solutions (BLFS) from strong-buy to hold, adding pressure on the stock and signaling less enthusiasm from analysts. Maxim Group downgrade coverage via Zacks
• Negative Sentiment: Kahn Swick & Foti said it is investigating the adequacy of the price and process in BioLife’s proposed sale to Repligen, raising the risk of shareholder litigation or a challenged deal process. BusinessWire investor alert on BioLife Solutions sale investigation
• Negative Sentiment: TD Cowen also downgraded BioLife Solutions (BLFS) to hold, reinforcing the cautious tone around the stock after the acquisition announcement. TD Cowen downgrade on BioLife Solutions

About BioLife Solutions

BioLife Solutions (NASDAQ:BLFS) specializes in biopreservation and cold chain workflow solutions for cell and gene therapies, regenerative medicine and other advanced biologics. The company develops and markets proprietary cryopreservation media and technology platforms designed to maintain cell viability and functionality during processing, storage and transport. BioLife’s product portfolio addresses critical steps in the manufacturing and distribution of cell-based products, helping life science researchers and biopharmaceutical manufacturers protect and preserve living cells.

The company’s flagship offerings include CryoStor, a family of serum-free cryopreservation media; HypoThermosol, a hypothermic storage solution for short-term cell and tissue preservation; and the ThawSTAR system, an automated cell thawing instrument that delivers controlled and reproducible warming of frozen cell therapies.