Public Sector Pension Investment Board Raises Position in BioLife Solutions, Inc. $BLFS

Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its holdings in BioLife Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:BLFS) by 19.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 151,378 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 24,913 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board’s holdings in BioLife Solutions were worth $3,862,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Forum Private Client Group LLC purchased a new position in BioLife Solutions in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $232,000. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS bought a new position in shares of BioLife Solutions in the second quarter worth approximately $205,000. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of BioLife Solutions by 3.8% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 921,105 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $19,842,000 after purchasing an additional 33,849 shares during the last quarter. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC purchased a new position in shares of BioLife Solutions in the second quarter worth $286,000. Finally, Stephens Investment Management Group LLC raised its holdings in BioLife Solutions by 14.5% during the 3rd quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC now owns 608,814 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $15,531,000 after buying an additional 77,095 shares during the last quarter. 93.24% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

BioLife Solutions Trading Down 0.6%

NASDAQ:BLFS opened at $23.09 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $24.03 and a 200-day moving average price of $25.16. BioLife Solutions, Inc. has a 12 month low of $19.10 and a 12 month high of $29.62. The stock has a market cap of $1.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -329.81 and a beta of 1.92.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BLFS has been the subject of several analyst reports. Zacks Research raised shares of BioLife Solutions from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $32.00 price objective on shares of BioLife Solutions in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of BioLife Solutions in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of BioLife Solutions in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Northland Securities set a $34.00 price target on BioLife Solutions in a research report on Monday, January 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $32.00.

Insider Transactions at BioLife Solutions

In other BioLife Solutions news, CFO Troy Wichterman sold 30,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.72, for a total value of $771,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 152,769 shares in the company, valued at $3,929,218.68. This trade represents a 16.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Amy Duross sold 2,000 shares of BioLife Solutions stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.00, for a total value of $54,000.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 22,687 shares in the company, valued at approximately $612,549. The trade was a 8.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders sold 42,005 shares of company stock valued at $1,080,100. 2.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.