TECHNE CORPORATION RELEASES UNAUDITED SECOND QUARTER RESULTS FOR FISCAL YEAR 2006

Minneapolis/January 31, 2006/--Techne Corporation’s (NASDAQ: TECH) consolidated net earnings increased 10.6% to $16.5 million or $.42 per diluted share for the quarter ended December 31, 2005 compared with $14.9 million or $.36 per diluted share for the quarter ended December 31, 2004. For the six months ended December 31, 2005, Techne's consolidated net earnings increased 15.1% to $33.5 million or $.84 per diluted share compared with $29.1 million or $.70 per diluted share for the six months ended December 31, 2004.

Consolidated net earnings and diluted earnings per share were negatively impacted by the decline in exchange rates used to covert R&D Europe results from British pounds to U.S. dollars and stock option related compensation expense from the adoption of Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) Statement of Accounting Standards No. 123 (Revised 2004), Share-Based Payments (SFAS No. 123R). The acquisitions of Fortron Bio Science, Inc. and BiosPacific, Inc. on July 1, 2005 and an accelerated stock buyback transaction ("ASB") on March 1, 2005 had positive impacts. The impact of these items on comparable earnings and diluted earnings per share is summarized as follows:

Consolidated net sales for the three and six months ended December 31, 2005 were $48.0 million and $95.7 million, respectively. This was an increase of 13.7% and 15.1% from the three and six months ended December 31, 2004, respectively. R&D Systems’ Biotechnology Division net sales for the three and six months ended December 31, 2005 were $29.0 million and $58.7 million, increases of 16.5% and 15.6%, respectively. R&D Europe’s net sales for the three and six months ended December 31, 2005 were $13.1 million and $25.0 million, increases of 1.9% and 4.6%, respectively. In British pound sterling, R&D Europe’s net sales increased 10.6% and 10.3% for the three and six months ended December 31, 2005, respectively. R&D Systems’ Hematology Division net sales for the quarter were $3.8 million, a decrease of 16.3%, mainly as a result of a large OEM customer changing to a new primary vendor in January 2005. Included in net sales for the three and six months ended December 31, 2005 was $2.2 million and $4.8 million, respectively, of net sales from Fortron Bio Science, Inc. and BiosPacific, Inc., which were acquired effective July 1, 2005.

Consolidated gross margins were 77.7% in the second quarter of fiscal 2006 as compared to 76.7% in the first quarter of fiscal 2006. For the six months ended December 31, 2005, consolidated gross margins were 77.2%. Excluding Fortron and BiosPacific, gross margins were 79.8% compared to 78.8% in the second quarter of fiscal 2005 and 79.5% compared to the 78.6% in the six months ended December 31, 2004. This increase was the result of a favorable mix of higher margin Biotechnology Division sales as compared to Hematology and R&D Europe sales. Gross margins for Fortron and BiosPacific operations of 34.5% and 35.0% for the quarter and six months ended December 31, 2005, respectively were negatively affected by purchase accounting related to inventory acquired.

Selling, general and administrative expenses as a percent of net sales increased to 16.6% and 15.1% for the three and six month periods ended December 31, 2005, respectively, primarily because the adoption of SFAS No. 123R related to stock option compensation added $1.1 million of expense for the three months ended December 31, 2005. Excluding the impact of adopting SFAS No. 123R, selling, general and administrative expense as a percent of net sales decreased to 14.3% from 14.9% for the three months ended December 31, 2005 and 2004, respectively, and to 13.6% from 14.3% in the six month periods ended December 31, 2005 and 2004, respectively.

Stock compensation expense during the three months ended December 31, 2005 primarily resulted from stock options granted to the Company’s non-employee members of the Board of Directors upon their annual reelection, which occurred at the Company’s October annual meeting, or their initial appointment. As a result of adopting SFAS No. 123R, estimated total compensation expense of approximately $1.7 million or $.04 per diluted share is anticipated for fiscal 2006 of which approximately $300,000 remains to be expensed in the last six months of the fiscal year.

The dollar increases in selling, general and administrative expenses were also impacted by the acquisitions of Fortron and BiosPacifc.

Second quarter expenses are also higher than in the first quarter mainly because of costs associated with production and printing of the R&D Systems’ 2006 catalog.

The Company allocated approximately $12.8 million to goodwill and $7.1 million to other intangible assets arising from the acquisition of Fortron and BiosPacific. The intangible assets, mainly trade names and customer and supplier relationships, are being amortized over lives of one to eight years and amortization expense of $272,000 and $543,000 was recorded for the quarter and six months ended December 31, 2005, respectively, related to these assets.

In March 2005, the Company repurchased approximately 2.9 million shares of its common stock under an ASB for an initial value of approximately $100 million. The ASB agreement was subject to a market price adjustment provision that was settled on December 30, 2005 for $26.0 million based on the volume weighted average price during the nine-month period ended in December 23, 2005.

Forward Looking Statements:

This earnings release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Litigation Reform Act. These statements, including our expectations as to the estimated compensation expense resulting from stock option expensing, involve risks and uncertainties that may affect the actual results of operations. The following important factors, among others, have affected and, in the future, could affect the Company’s actual results: the integration of the recent acquisitions, the introduction and acceptance of new biotechnology and hematology products, the levels and particular directions of research by the Company’s customers, the impact of the growing number of producers of biotechnology research products and related price competition, the retention of hematology OEM and proficiency survey business, the impact of currency exchange rate fluctuations, and the costs and results of research and product development efforts of the Company and of companies in which the Company has invested or with which it has formed strategic relationships. For additional information concerning such factors, see the Company’s annual report on Form 10-K and quarterly reports on Form 10-Q as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. We undertake no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements we make in this release due to new information or future events. Investors are cautioned not to place undue emphasis on these statements.

Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures:

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Techne Corporation has two operating subsidiaries: Research and Diagnostic Systems, Inc. (R&D Systems) of Minneapolis, Minnesota and R&D Systems Europe, Ltd. (R&D Europe) of Abingdon, England. R&D Systems is a specialty manufacturer of biological products. R&D Systems has two subsidiaries, Fortron Bio Science, Inc. (Fortron), located in Minneapolis, and BiosPacific, Inc., located in Emeryville, California. Fortron develops and manufactures antibodies and BiosPacific is a worldwide supplier of biologics to manufacturers of in vitro diagnostic systems and immunodiagnostic kits. R&D Europe is a distributor of biotechnology products.

Contact:

Greg Melsen, Chief Financial Officer
Kathy Backes, Controller
(612) 379-8854

TECHNE CORPORATION CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF EARNINGS (In thousands, except per share data) (Unaudited)
	QUARTER ENDED		SIX MONTHS ENDED
	12/31/05	12/31/04	12/31/05	12/31/04
Net sales	$ 48,029	$42,247	$95,738	$83,166
Cost of sales	10,695	8,941	21,791	17,828
Gross margin	37,334	33,306	73,947	65,338
Operating expenses:
Selling, general and administrative	7,980	6,290	14,434	11,924
Research and development	4,574	4,619	9,291	9,307
Amortization of intangible assets	492	306	984	611
Total operating expenses	13,046	11,215	24,709	21,842
Operating income	24,288	22,091	49,238	43,496
Other expense (income):
Interest expense	238	178	461	423
Interest income	(1,130)	(1,189)	(2,104)	(2,242)
Other non-operating expense (income), net	281	416	492	882
Total other expense (income)	(611)	(595)	(1,151)	(937)
Earnings before income taxes	24,899	22,686	50,389	44,433
Income taxes	8,385	7,752	16,874	15,307
Net earnings	$ 16,514	$ 14,934	$ 33,515	$ 29,126
Earnings per share:
Basic	$ 0.42	$ 0.36	$ 0.86	$ 0.71
Diluted	$ 0.42	$ 0.36	$ 0.84	$ 0.70
Weighted average common shares outstanding:
Basic	38,877	41,279	38,815	41,224
Diluted	39,761	41,681	39,730	41,678