Babcock International Group PLC has earned a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from six brokerages covering the firm. One analyst rated the stock with a hold recommendation, while five assigned a buy recommendation. The average 1-year price target among brokerages is GBX 585.80 ($7.67). Bank of America reiterated a "buy" rating with a price target of GBX 660 ($8.64), and Shore Capital also reaffirmed a "buy" rating. Berenberg Bank, however, cut the rating to "hold" while raising the target price from GBX 510 ($6.67) to GBX 565 ($7.39).
Babcock's stock opened at GBX 472 ($6.18) and has seen a 12-month low of GBX 373.60 ($4.89) and a high of GBX 575 ($7.53). The company recently announced a dividend of GBX 3.30 ($0.04), which represents a dividend yield of 0.68% and an increase from the previous dividend of $1.70. Insider transactions included John Ramsay purchasing 10,000 shares at GBX 496 ($6.49) and David Mellors selling 276,512 shares at GBX 501 ($6.56).
In related news, Bio-Techne Co. has also received a "Moderate Buy" consensus rating from ten ratings firms. Three analysts rated the stock with a hold rating and seven issued a buy rating. The average 12-month price target is set at $80.60. Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price from $72.00 to $70.00, while Robert W. Baird raised it from $81.00 to $82.00. Benchmark reaffirmed a "buy" rating with a target of $95.00.
Bio-Techne's stock opened at $72.98 and has a market capitalization of $11.58 billion. The company reported $0.49 earnings per share, matching consensus estimates, and had a net margin of 14.50%. The firm declared a quarterly dividend of $0.08 per share, yielding 0.44%. Hedge funds and institutional investors own 98.95% of the company's stock.