Harvard Bioscience (NASDAQ:HBIO) Downgraded by Wall Street Zen to Hold

Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Harvard Bioscience (NASDAQ:HBIO) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday.

A number of other brokerages have also recently issued reports on HBIO. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Harvard Bioscience in a report on Monday, December 29th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Harvard Bioscience to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Benchmark dropped their price objective on shares of Harvard Bioscience from $20.00 to $6.00 and set a “speculative buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 13th. Finally, New Street Research set a $6.00 price objective on shares of Harvard Bioscience in a report on Friday, March 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Harvard Bioscience presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $6.00.

Harvard Bioscience Stock Down 5.9%

HBIO stock opened at $5.27 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $5.55 and its 200 day simple moving average is $5.66. The company has a market cap of $23.56 million, a P/E ratio of -0.41 and a beta of 1.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.61, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a current ratio of 2.20. Harvard Bioscience has a fifty-two week low of $2.81 and a fifty-two week high of $9.50.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Stephen J. Denelsky acquired 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 17th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $4.87 per share, for a total transaction of $48,700.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 21,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $102,270. The trade was a 90.91% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO John D. Duke acquired 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 16th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $5.01 per share, for a total transaction of $25,050.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer directly owned 105,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $526,050. The trade was a 5.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders purchased 36,000 shares of company stock worth $177,354. 20.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Weber Capital Management LLC ADV purchased a new position in Harvard Bioscience during the fourth quarter worth about $2,140,000. Corsair Capital Management L.P. grew its position in Harvard Bioscience by 1,008.7% in the 4th quarter. Corsair Capital Management L.P. now owns 1,108,692 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $741,000 after purchasing an additional 1,008,692 shares in the last quarter. Nano Cap New Millennium Growth Fund L P purchased a new stake in Harvard Bioscience in the 4th quarter valued at about $401,000. AMH Equity Ltd increased its stake in Harvard Bioscience by 15.4% in the 3rd quarter. AMH Equity Ltd now owns 4,047,535 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $1,775,000 after buying an additional 538,832 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Meros Investment Management LP lifted its position in shares of Harvard Bioscience by 32.6% during the 4th quarter. Meros Investment Management LP now owns 1,217,628 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $814,000 after buying an additional 299,369 shares in the last quarter. 80.87% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Harvard Bioscience

Harvard Bioscience, Inc develops, manufactures and distributes life science research instruments and consumables used by academic, biopharmaceutical and government laboratories worldwide. The company’s product portfolio spans cellular physiology, microfluidics, electrophysiology and lab automation, providing tools that enable researchers to study everything from cell behavior and organ function to drug delivery and tissue mechanics.

Through its operating units—most notably Harvard Apparatus, BTX, Radnoti and Warner Instruments—Harvard Bioscience offers a diverse range of scientific equipment including precision pumps, stereotaxic instruments, electroporation and gene delivery systems, perfusion systems and microinjection tools.