<SEC-DOCUMENT>0001437749-17-005142.txt : 20170614
<SEC-HEADER>0001437749-17-005142.hdr.sgml : 20170614
<ACCEPTANCE-DATETIME>20170323171448
<PRIVATE-TO-PUBLIC>
ACCESSION NUMBER:		0001437749-17-005142
CONFORMED SUBMISSION TYPE:	CORRESP
PUBLIC DOCUMENT COUNT:		2
FILED AS OF DATE:		20170323

FILER:

	COMPANY DATA:	
		COMPANY CONFORMED NAME:			BIO-TECHNE Corp
		CENTRAL INDEX KEY:			0000842023
		STANDARD INDUSTRIAL CLASSIFICATION:	BIOLOGICAL PRODUCTS (NO DIAGNOSTIC SUBSTANCES) [2836]
		IRS NUMBER:				411427402
		STATE OF INCORPORATION:			MN
		FISCAL YEAR END:			0630

	FILING VALUES:
		FORM TYPE:		CORRESP

	BUSINESS ADDRESS:	
		STREET 1:		614 MCKINLEY PL N E
		CITY:			MINNEAPOLIS
		STATE:			MN
		ZIP:			55413
		BUSINESS PHONE:		6123798854

	MAIL ADDRESS:	
		STREET 1:		614 MCKINLEY PLACE NE
		CITY:			MINNEAPOLIS
		STATE:			MN
		ZIP:			55413

	FORMER COMPANY:	
		FORMER CONFORMED NAME:	TECHNE CORP /MN/
		DATE OF NAME CHANGE:	19920703
</SEC-HEADER>
<DOCUMENT>
<TYPE>CORRESP
<SEQUENCE>1
<FILENAME>filename1.htm
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<P id=PARA1 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><STRONG></STRONG>&nbsp;</P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><STRONG></STRONG>&nbsp;</P>
<P id=PARA2 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">March 23, 2017</FONT></P>
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<P id=PARA4 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">Mr. Jim B. Rosenberg<BR>United States Securities and Exchange Commission<BR>Division of Corporation Finance<BR>100 F Street, N.E.<BR>Washington, D.C. 20549-7010</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA5 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA6 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA7 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt 0pt 0pt 72pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25; TEXT-INDENT: -36.2pt"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"><B>Re:</B>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<B>Bio-Techne Corporation</B><B><BR>Form&nbsp;10-K for Fiscal Year Ended </B><B>June 30, 2016</B></FONT></P>
<P id=PARA8 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt 0pt 0pt 72pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"><B>Filed August 29</B><B>, 2016</B></FONT></P>
<P id=PARA9 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt 0pt 0pt 72pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"><B>Form 10-Q for the Quarterly Period Ended December 31, 2016</B></FONT></P>
<P id=PARA10 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt 0pt 0pt 72pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"><B>Filed February 9, 2017</B></FONT></P>
<P id=PARA11 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt 0pt 0pt 72pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"><B>DEF 14A filed September 13, 2016</B><B><BR>File No.&nbsp;</B><B>000-17272</B></FONT></P>
<P id=PARA12 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA13 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA14 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.15pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25; TEXT-INDENT: -0.15pt"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">Dear Mr. Rosenberg:</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA15 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA16 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.3pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25; TEXT-INDENT: -0.15pt"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">This letter is written in response to the Staff&#8217;s comment letter dated February 22, 2017 on the Form&nbsp;10-K of Bio-Techne Corporation (&#8220;the Company&#8221;, &#8220;we&#8221; or &#8220;our&#8221;) for the year ended June 30, 2016, the Form 10-Q for the period ended December 31, 2016, and the DEF 14A filed September 13, 2016. For ease of reference, the numbered responses correspond to the paragraphs as numbered within the comment letter. We have also included the Staff&#8217;s comment along with our response to assist in the review process.</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA17 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA18 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"><U>Form&nbsp;10-K for the period ended </U><U>June 30, 2016</U></FONT></P>
<P id=PARA19 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"><U>Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements</U></FONT></P>
<P id=PARA20 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"><U>Note 4. Inventories, page 44 </U></FONT></P>
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<P id=PARA22 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"><I>1. Please tell us the costs incurred in fiscal 2016, 2015 and 2014 for excess protein, antibody and chemically-based inventory, which was not valued and where those costs are recorded in the consolidated statements of earnings. Also regarding the amounts you disclose at June 30, 2016 and 2015 of $23.4 million and $24.0 million, respectively, tell us what these amounts represent and their relevance. Finally tell us the amount recognized in net sales during fiscal 2016, 2015 and 2014 of inventory sold that was not valued. </I></FONT></P>
<P id=PARA23 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt 0pt 0pt 18pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25; TEXT-INDENT: -18pt"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA24 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA25 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"><B>Response</B></FONT></P>
<P id=PARA26 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA27 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">The Company incurred costs of $1.2 million in fiscal year 2016, $1.1 million in fiscal year 2015, and $0.9 million in 2014 for excess protein, antibody and chemically-based inventory, which was not valued. These costs were recorded within the cost of sales line on the consolidated statements of earnings. </FONT></P>
<P id=PARA28 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA29 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">The Company recorded inventory reserves of $23.4 million at June 30, 2016 and $24.0 million at June 30, 2015. The inventory reserves represent the cumulative write-down of inventory to the lower of cost or market at the close of a fiscal period. The write-down of inventory creates a new cost basis that subsequently is not marked-up based on changes in underlying facts and circumstances.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;The following is disclosed in our Critical Accounting Policies (page 31) and Note 1 (page 39) of the June 30, 2016 Form 10-K: </FONT></P>
<P id=PARA30 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA31 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&#8220;To meet strict customer quality standards, the Company has established a highly controlled manufacturing process for proteins, antibodies and its chemically-based products. These products require the initial manufacture of multiple batches to determine if quality standards can be consistently met. In addition, the Company will produce larger batches of established products than current sales requirements due to economies of scale. The manufacturing process for these products, therefore, has and will continue to produce quantities in excess of forecasted usage. The Company values its manufactured protein and antibody inventory based on a two-year forecast and its chemically-based products on a five year forecast. Inventory quantities in excess of the forecast are not valued due to uncertainty over salability.&#8221;</FONT></P>
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<P id=PARA33 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">As we discussed in our March 8, 2006 response to a comment letter received by us dated February 28, 2006, the most important factors in producing proteins, antibodies and our chemically-based products are quality and consistency. Customers who use the products in scientific experiments rely on the Company's product to be of the highest quality and of consistent purity and activity. If the products do not meet these standards, it could result in inconclusive or erroneous experiment results, and could affect conclusions made by the customer during the experiment and/or could result in the expense of repeating the experiment.</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA34 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA35 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">Once a new product has been developed and the procedures and protocols for manufacturing the product have been established, the Company produces two to three lots (batches) of each product in order to determine that the product can be made consistently. If these lots meet strict quality control standards they will become inventory on hand, most likely resulting in excess inventory on hand.</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA36 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA37 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">Manufacturing of an established product can result in differing quantities of finished product. Because the manufacturing process is scientific in nature, many factors can affect the yield obtained from a particular manufactured lot of product, including temperature, quality of raw materials, the person manufacturing the product and/or the equipment used. This means that at the start of the manufacturing process, it is not known how much finished product will result. In addition, because of the large number of proteins and antibodies the Company offers, it is more efficient to produce larger lots of each product in order to reduce the number of lots needed to be manufactured in a particular time period.</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA38 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA39 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">The manufacturing process for proteins, antibodies, and chemically-based products, therefore, has produced, and may continue to produce, quantities in excess of forecasted usage. This is a result of the above noted variables involved in the manufacturing process.</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA40 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA41 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">The reserve is primarily comprised of new products and/or slow moving products for which the likelihood of selling all or a majority of the inventory on hand is highly uncertain. At the time many of these products are developed, there may be no market or a very limited market for them because of the limited scientific knowledge of their biological function and activity. Subsequently, scientific interest may increase appreciably as more research is conducted and published. This is a process that occurs over multiple years and, as a result, may lead to significant increases in sales of these products. Since we are on the leading edge with the development and release of new proteins and antibodies associated with those proteins, it is very difficult to predict whether a market for them will ever develop. Accordingly, we assign little or no value to new products at the time of their initial release as we cannot estimate sales beyond two-year to five-year horizon.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Although stability of products is not guaranteed, many of our products remain stable for a period beyond the two-year to five year-horizon. Therefore, each year we do record some sales of products for which the associated inventory has not been valued. These sales were less than 3% of consolidated net sales during each of the fiscal years ended June 30, 2016, 2015, and 2014. The Company concluded that these sales were immaterial to our consolidated financial statements. </FONT></P>
<P id=PARA42 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA43 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">In future 10-K filings, the Company will expand our disclosure regarding valuation of inventories to include discussion of the lower of cost or market adjustment recorded and the amount of net sales recognized on inventory that was not valued to include the substance of the following paragraph:</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA44 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA45 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&#8220;The company records a lower of cost or market adjustment to cost of sales for those quantities that are in excess of the manufactured protein and antibody two-year forecast and the chemically-based products five year forecast. For the years ended June 30, 20XX, 20XX, and 20XX the amount recognized in net sales of inventory sold that was not valued is not material.&#8221;</FONT></P>
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<P id=PARA47 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">The Company considers sales of inventory that was not valued representing 10% or more of our consolidated net sales to be material for the Company. We will include expanded disclosures if sales exceed that threshold.</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA48 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"></FONT></P>
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<P id=PARA51 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"><U>Form 10-Q for the Quarter Ended December 31, 2016 </U></FONT></P>
<P id=PARA52 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"><U>Management&#8217;s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condi</U><U>tion and Results of Operations </U></FONT></P>
<P id=PARA53 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"><U>Results of Operations, page 14 </U></FONT></P>
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<P id=PARA55 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"><I>2. Please tell us why you refer to adjusted financial measures rather than to non-GAAP financial measures as it appears from disclosure in your earnings release that you believe the adjusted financial measures represent non-GAAP financial measures. </I></FONT></P>
<P id=PARA56 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA57 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"><B>Response</B></FONT></P>
<P id=PARA58 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA59 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">As disclosed in our earnings release, the Company believes that the adjusted financial measures represent non-GAAP financial measure. Therefore, in future filings we will confirm the titles of these financial measure between the press release and related Form 10-Q. Future Form 10-Q filings will disclose these financial measures as &#8220;Non-GAAP adjusted financial measures&#8221;. </FONT></P>
<P id=PARA60 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA61 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA62 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"><I>3. Please explain to us how each of your adjusted financial measures: </I></FONT></P>
<P id=PARA63 style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt; MARGIN-TOP: 0pt"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
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<P id=PARA66 style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN-TOP: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0pt"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"><I>&#9679;</I></FONT></P></TD>
<TD style="VERTICAL-ALIGN: top">
<P id=PARA67 style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN-TOP: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0pt"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"><I>is helpful in assessing your ongoing operating results; </I></FONT></P></TD></TR>
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<P id=PARA71 style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN-TOP: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0pt"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"><I>&#9679;</I></FONT></P></TD>
<TD style="VERTICAL-ALIGN: top">
<P id=PARA72 style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN-TOP: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0pt"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"><I>facilitates your internal comparisons to historical operating results; and </I></FONT></P></TD></TR>
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<P id=PARA76 style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN-TOP: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0pt"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"><I>&#9679;</I></FONT></P></TD>
<TD style="VERTICAL-ALIGN: top">
<P id=PARA77 style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN-TOP: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0pt"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"><I>facilitates comparisons to competitors' operating results. </I></FONT></P></TD></TR></TABLE>
<P id=PARA68 style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt; MARGIN-TOP: 0pt"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA79 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"><I>In your response, indicate how the adjustments to arrive at adjusted financial measures relate to assessing ongoing results and facilitate your internal comparisons to historical operating results. In this regard, amortization of intangible assets you acquire and stock-based compensation appear to be ongoing expenses. Also in your response, provide us some examples as to how adjusted financial measures facilitate comparisons to competitors. </I></FONT></P>
<P id=PARA80 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA81 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"><B>Response</B></FONT></P>
<P id=PARA83 style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt; MARGIN-TOP: 0pt"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA82 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">We believe that reporting non-GAAP adjusted net earnings enhances the comparability of our results between periods and provides additional information and transparency to investors on adjustments and other items that are not indicative of the Company&#8217;s current and future operating performance. </FONT></P>
<P id=PARA85 style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt; MARGIN-TOP: 0pt"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA84 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">Since the beginning of fiscal year 2014,&nbsp;the Company has undergone radical transformative changes.&nbsp;These changes have included nine acquisitions which resulted in a significant amount of acquired inventory and intangible assets as well as acquisition-related expenses, including contingent consideration. These expenses can vary significantly from period to period based on current activity. The Company excluded amortization of purchased intangible assets and purchase accounting adjustments, including costs recognized upon the sale of acquired inventory and acquisition-related expenses, from this measure because they occur as a result of specific events, and are not reflective of our internal investments, the costs of developing, producing, supporting and selling our products, and the other ongoing costs to support our operating structure</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA87 style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt; MARGIN-TOP: 0pt"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA86 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">The Company&#8217;s non-GAAP adjusted net earnings also excludes stock based compensation expense. Stock based compensation expense can and has varied significantly from period to period as the Company continues to expand employee participation in the stock based compensation program and as a result of changes in valuation assumptions. Stock based compensation is excluded from non-GAAP adjusted earnings because of the nature of this charge, specifically the varying available valuation methodologies, subjective assumptions, and the variety of award types. Its exclusion facilities comparison of the Company&#8217;s operating results to peer companies.</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA176.1 style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px; MARGIN-TOP: 0px"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
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<DIV id=PGHDR176  style="WIDTH: 100%; TEXT-ALIGN: left">&nbsp;</DIV></DIV>
<P id=PARA176.2 style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px; MARGIN-TOP: 0px"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA88 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">In addition to traditional GAAP metrics, non-GAAP adjusted net earnings is one of the primary metrics used by management in evaluating the Company&#8217;s performance.&nbsp;For example, the Company uses non-GAAP net earnings to forecast future results, provide earnings guidance to investors, compensate employees, make strategic decisions and allocate Company resources.</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA90 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA91 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">We present non-GAAP adjusted net earnings in a manner that is transparent.&nbsp;The adjustments have been consistently applied period over period by the Company, and we have provided investors with relevant details for each adjustment to allow them to assess the usefulness of the adjustment.&nbsp;Further, analysts for our industry group base their third party consensus estimates on non-GAAP adjusted net earnings per share metrics. Additionally, the Company has performed benchmarking against the peer group companies identified in our proxy and noted similar adjustments for acquired intangible asset amortization, acquisition related charges, and share based compensation in the calculation of non-GAAP measures. </FONT></P>
<P id=PARA92 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA93 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA94 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"><I>4. Provide us a comparison of the effective tax rate determined in your GAAP financial statements to the effective rate you apply to adjustments to arrive at adjusted financial measures for the quarter and six months ended December 31, 2016, and explain to us the reason for the differences. </I></FONT></P>
<P id=PARA95 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA96 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"><B>Response</B></FONT></P>
<P id=PARA97 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA98 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">Our reported tax rate for 2016 and 2015 includes the tax rate impact of discrete tax items. Depending on the nature of discrete tax items, our reported tax rate may not be consistent on a period to period basis. The Company independently calculates a Non-GAAP adjusted tax rate to be applied to the identified Non-GAAP adjustments considering the impact of discrete items on these adjustments and the jurisdictional mix of the adjustments. The following table summarizes the reported GAAP tax rate and the effective rate applied to adjustments to arrive at the adjusted financial measures for the quarter and six months ended December 31, 2016.</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA99 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<TABLE id=TBL125  style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 95%; MARGIN-RIGHT: 5%; TEXT-INDENT: 0px" cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 border=0>

<TR>
<TD style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 48%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: top">&nbsp;</TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.1.lead.D3 style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 1%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: top">&nbsp;</TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.1.amt.D3 style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 14%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: top; TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN-LEFT: 0pt" colSpan=6>
<P id=PARA100 style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">Second Quarter Ended December 31</FONT></P></TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.1.trail.D3 style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 1%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: top">&nbsp;</TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.1.lead.D5 style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 1%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: top">&nbsp;</TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.1.amt.D5 style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 14%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: top; TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN-LEFT: 0pt" colSpan=6>
<P id=PARA101 style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">Six Months Ended December 31</FONT></P></TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.1.trail.D5 style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 1%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: top">&nbsp;</TD></TR>
<TR>
<TD style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 48%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: top"><B>&nbsp;</B></TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.2.lead.D2 style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 1%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: top"><B>&nbsp;</B></TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.2.amt.D2 style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px; FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 1%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: top; MARGIN-TOP: 0px" colSpan=2>
<P id=PARA102 style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px; TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN-TOP: 0px; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"><B>2016</B></FONT></P></TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.2.trail.D2 style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 1%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: top"><B>&nbsp;</B></TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.2.lead.D3 style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 1%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: top"><B>&nbsp;</B></TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.2.amt.D3 style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px; FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 1%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: top; MARGIN-TOP: 0px" colSpan=2>
<P id=PARA103 style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px; TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN-TOP: 0px; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"><B>2015</B></FONT></P></TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.2.trail.D3 style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 1%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: top"><B>&nbsp;</B></TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.2.lead.D4 style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 1%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: top"><B>&nbsp;</B></TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.2.amt.D4 style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px; FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 1%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: top; MARGIN-TOP: 0px" colSpan=2>
<P id=PARA104 style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px; TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN-TOP: 0px; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"><B>2016</B></FONT></P></TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.2.trail.D4 style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 1%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: top"><B>&nbsp;</B></TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.2.lead.D5 style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 1%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: top"><B>&nbsp;</B></TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.2.amt.D5 style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 1%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: top; TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN-LEFT: 0pt" colSpan=2>
<P id=PARA105 style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"><B>2015</B></FONT></P></TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.2.trail.D5 style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 1%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: top"><B>&nbsp;</B></TD></TR>
<TR>
<TD style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 48%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: top; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #cceeff">
<P id=PARA106 style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt; MARGIN-TOP: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">Reported GAAP tax rate</FONT></P></TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.3.lead.2 style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 1%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: bottom; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #cceeff">&nbsp;</TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.3.symb.2 style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px; FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 1%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: bottom; TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN-TOP: 0px; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #cceeff" colSpan=2>53.4%</TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.3.trail.2 style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 1%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: bottom; MARGIN-LEFT: 0pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #cceeff" noWrap>
<P id=PARA108 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"></FONT>&nbsp;</P></TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.3.lead.3 style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 1%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: bottom; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #cceeff">&nbsp;</TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.3.symb.3 style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 1%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: bottom; TEXT-ALIGN: center; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #cceeff" colSpan=2>26.9%</TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.3.trail.3 style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 1%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: bottom; MARGIN-LEFT: 0pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #cceeff" noWrap>
<P id=PARA110 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"></FONT>&nbsp;</P></TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.3.lead.4 style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 1%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: bottom; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #cceeff">&nbsp;</TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.3.symb.4 style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 1%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: bottom; TEXT-ALIGN: center; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #cceeff" colSpan=2>40.0%</TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.3.trail.4 style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 1%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: bottom; MARGIN-LEFT: 0pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #cceeff" noWrap>
<P id=PARA112 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"></FONT>&nbsp;</P></TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.3.lead.5 style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 1%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: bottom; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #cceeff">&nbsp;</TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.3.symb.5 style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 1%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: bottom; TEXT-ALIGN: center; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #cceeff" colSpan=2>27.8%</TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.3.trail.5 style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 1%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: bottom; MARGIN-LEFT: 0pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #cceeff" noWrap>
<P id=PARA114 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"></FONT>&nbsp;</P></TD></TR>
<TR>
<TD style="WIDTH: 48%; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #ffffff">&nbsp;</TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.4.lead.B2 style="WIDTH: 1%; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #ffffff">&nbsp;</TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.4.symb.B2 style="WIDTH: 1%; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #ffffff">&nbsp;</TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.4.amt.B2 style="WIDTH: 10%; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #ffffff">&nbsp;</TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.4.trail.B2 style="WIDTH: 1%; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #ffffff">&nbsp;</TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.4.lead.B3 style="WIDTH: 1%; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #ffffff">&nbsp;</TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.4.symb.B3 style="WIDTH: 1%; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #ffffff">&nbsp;</TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.4.amt.B3 style="WIDTH: 10%; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #ffffff">&nbsp;</TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.4.trail.B3 style="WIDTH: 1%; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #ffffff">&nbsp;</TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.4.lead.B4 style="WIDTH: 1%; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #ffffff">&nbsp;</TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.4.symb.B4 style="WIDTH: 1%; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #ffffff">&nbsp;</TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.4.amt.B4 style="WIDTH: 10%; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #ffffff">&nbsp;</TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.4.trail.B4 style="WIDTH: 1%; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #ffffff">&nbsp;</TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.4.lead.B5 style="WIDTH: 1%; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #ffffff">&nbsp;</TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.4.symb.B5 style="WIDTH: 1%; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #ffffff">&nbsp;</TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.4.amt.B5 style="WIDTH: 10%; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #ffffff">&nbsp;</TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.4.trail.B5 style="WIDTH: 1%; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #ffffff">&nbsp;</TD></TR>
<TR>
<TD style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 48%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: top; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #cceeff">
<P id=PARA116 style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt; MARGIN-TOP: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">Non-GAAP adjusted tax rate applied to adjustments</FONT></P></TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.5.lead.2 style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 1%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: bottom; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #cceeff">&nbsp;</TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.5.symb.2 style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 1%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: bottom; TEXT-ALIGN: center; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #cceeff" colSpan=2>28.6%</TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.5.trail.2 style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 1%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: bottom; MARGIN-LEFT: 0pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #cceeff" noWrap>
<P id=PARA118 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"></FONT>&nbsp;</P></TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.5.lead.3 style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 1%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: bottom; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #cceeff">&nbsp;</TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.5.symb.3 style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 1%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: bottom; TEXT-ALIGN: center; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #cceeff" colSpan=2>30.1%</TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.5.trail.3 style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 1%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: bottom; MARGIN-LEFT: 0pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #cceeff" noWrap>
<P id=PARA120 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"></FONT>&nbsp;</P></TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.5.lead.4 style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 1%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: bottom; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #cceeff">&nbsp;</TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.5.symb.4 style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 1%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: bottom; TEXT-ALIGN: center; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #cceeff" colSpan=2>30.0%</TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.5.trail.4 style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 1%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: bottom; MARGIN-LEFT: 0pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #cceeff" noWrap>
<P id=PARA122 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"></FONT>&nbsp;</P></TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.5.lead.5 style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 1%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: bottom; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #cceeff">&nbsp;</TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.5.symb.5 style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 1%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: bottom; TEXT-ALIGN: center; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #cceeff" colSpan=2>30.7%</TD>
<TD id=TBL125.finRow.5.trail.5 style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif; WIDTH: 1%; VERTICAL-ALIGN: bottom; MARGIN-LEFT: 0pt; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #cceeff" noWrap>
<P id=PARA124 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"></FONT>&nbsp;</P></TD></TR></TABLE>
<P id=PARA126 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA127 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">The difference between the reported GAAP tax rate and Non-GAAP tax rate applied to the adjustments for the quarter and six months ended December 31, 2016 is primarily a result of the discrete income tax expenses recorded for the revaluation of contingent consideration. Contingent consideration, which is not tax deductible, represented $10.5 million and $12.4 million of the acquisition related expenses during the quarter and six months ended December 31, 2016.</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA128 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA129 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">The tax impact of the research and development credit and foreign adjustments represent discrete and other non-recurring charges which impact our reported GAAP tax rate and may not be consistent on a period to period basis. Historically, the Company considered the research and development credit an item that should be excluded from non-GAAP adjusted net earnings because it was not guaranteed and required annual approval by Congress. The Company concluded in fiscal year 2017 that this item should no longer be adjusted as it was permanently extended by Congress. The Company&#8217;s adjusted net earnings calculation for the six months ended December 31, 2016 reflects this change.</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA177.1 style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px; MARGIN-TOP: 0px"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<DIV id=PGBK177  style="WIDTH: 100%; MARGIN-LEFT: 0pt; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0pt">
<DIV id=PGFTR177  style="WIDTH: 100%; TEXT-ALIGN: center">&nbsp;</DIV>
<DIV id=PGNUM177  style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; WIDTH: 100%; TEXT-ALIGN: center">&nbsp;</DIV>
<HR style="HEIGHT: 2px; WIDTH: 100%; PAGE-BREAK-AFTER: always; COLOR: #000000" noShade>

<DIV id=PGHDR177  style="WIDTH: 100%; TEXT-ALIGN: left">&nbsp;</DIV></DIV>
<P id=PARA177.2 style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px; MARGIN-TOP: 0px"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA131 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">The Company will include expanded disclosures in future filings to further explain the reason for material differences between the GAAP tax rate and the effective rate applied to adjustments to arrive at the Non-GAAP financial measures.</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA132 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA133 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt 0pt 0pt 18pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25; TEXT-INDENT: -18pt"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA134 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"><U>Certifications </U></FONT></P>
<P id=PARA135 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"><U>Exhibits 31.1 and 31.2 </U></FONT></P>
<P id=PARA136 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA137 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"><I>5. Please amend your certifications to properly reflect your current business name. The certifications state the company's name as Techne Corporation. This comment also applies to your Form 10-Q for the quarterly period ended September 30, 2016. </I></FONT></P>
<P id=PARA138 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA139 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;<B>Response</B></FONT></P>
<P id=PARA140 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA141 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">The Company has filed a Form 10-Q/A for the quarterly periods ended September 30, 2016 and December 31, 2016 to amend the certifications to state the company&#8217;s name as Bio-Techne Corporation. </FONT></P>
<P id=PARA142 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA143 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"><U>Definitive Proxy Statement </U></FONT></P>
<P id=PARA144 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"><U>Executive Compensation</U></FONT></P>
<P id=PARA145 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"><U>Compensation Discussion and Analysis, page 18</U>&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA146 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA147 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"><I>6. With respect to your Annual Goal-Based Cash Awards, please confirm that you will revise future filings, as applicable, to disclose the threshold, target and maximum level of achievement required for each metric and explain how actual performance relative to each metric factored into the actual payout. </I></FONT></P>
<P id=PARA148 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA149 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"><B>Response</B></FONT></P>
<P id=PARA150 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA151 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">In future filings with respect to the Company&#8217;s short-term cash incentive awards, the Company undertakes to disclose the threshold, target, and maximum level of achievement required for each metric and to explain how actual performance relative to each metric factors into actual payout of such awards.</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA152 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA153 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"><I>7. Please tell us why your Compensation Discussion and Analysis does not explain the basis for the bonus payments referenced in the final sentence of footnote 1 on page 30 of your definitive proxy statement. Also, explain to us where these bonus payments are reflected in your Summary Compensation Table. </I></FONT></P>
<P id=PARA154 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA155 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif"><B>Response</B></FONT></P>
<P id=PARA156 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA157 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">The Company has reviewed the above-referenced disclosures and its records. The Company has determined that the bonus payments referenced in the final section of footnote 1 on page 30 of the Company&#8217;s definitive proxy statement should have described the short-term cash incentives earned for FY 2016 performance, which are accurately described in the &#8220;Non-Equity Incentive Plan Compensation&#8221; column of the Summary Compensation Table. Accordingly, the sentence should have read as follows: &#8220;On July 28, 2016, the Executive Compensation Committee approved the following cash incentive payments: Mr. Kummeth in the amount of $1,221,097, Mr. Hippel in the amount of $421,660, Mr. Eansor in the amount of $282,110, Mr. Gavin in the amount of $136,278, and Mr. Gould in the amount of $145,463.&#8221; The Compensation Discussion and Analysis describes the bases for these short-term incentive compensation payments on pages&nbsp;21 and&nbsp;22.</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA158 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA159 style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">***&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA160 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA161 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.15pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25; TEXT-INDENT: -0.15pt"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">We acknowledge that we are responsible for the adequacy and accuracy of the disclosure in the filing, that Staff comments or changes to disclosure in response to Staff comments do not foreclose the Commission from taking any action with respect to the filing, and that we may not assert Staff comments as a defense in any proceeding initiated by the Commission or any person under the federal securities laws of the United States.</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA178.1 style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px; MARGIN-TOP: 0px"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<DIV id=PGBK178  style="WIDTH: 100%; MARGIN-LEFT: 0pt; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0pt">
<DIV id=PGFTR178  style="WIDTH: 100%; TEXT-ALIGN: center">&nbsp;</DIV>
<DIV id=PGNUM178  style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; WIDTH: 100%; TEXT-ALIGN: center">&nbsp;</DIV>
<HR style="HEIGHT: 2px; WIDTH: 100%; PAGE-BREAK-AFTER: always; COLOR: #000000" noShade>

<DIV id=PGHDR178  style="WIDTH: 100%; TEXT-ALIGN: left">&nbsp;</DIV></DIV>
<P id=PARA178.2 style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0px; MARGIN-TOP: 0px"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA163 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">On behalf of the company,&nbsp;I thank you for your consideration of our responses. Should the Staff have further questions or comments or need any further information or clarification, please do not hesitate to contact me.</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA164 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA165 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.45pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25; TEXT-INDENT: -0.15pt"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">Sincerely,</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA166 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA167 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA168 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">&nbsp;/s/ James T. Hippel</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA169 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.6pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25; TEXT-INDENT: -0.15pt"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">James T. Hippel</FONT></P>
<P id=PARA170 style="TEXT-ALIGN: left; MARGIN: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.75pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 1.25; TEXT-INDENT: -0.15pt"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times New Roman, Times, serif">Chief Financial Officer</FONT> </P></BODY></HTML>
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end
</TEXT>
</DOCUMENT>
</SEC-DOCUMENT>
