Danaher (NYSE:DHR) Hits New 1-Year Low – Here’s What Happened

Danaher Co. (NYSE:DHR)’s share price reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $203.00 and last traded at $203.42, with a volume of 7038666 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $206.76.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

DHR has been the subject of several analyst reports. Scotiabank began coverage on Danaher in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. They set a “sector perform” rating and a $265.00 price objective for the company. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Danaher from $285.00 to $265.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. KeyCorp raised their price target on Danaher from $290.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. StockNews.com downgraded Danaher from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, December 14th. Finally, Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Danaher from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $285.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $278.00.

Danaher Trading Up 0.3 %

The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $231.17 and a 200-day simple moving average of $250.62. The company has a current ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $146.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 0.83.

Danaher (NYSE:DHR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The conglomerate reported $2.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $2.14. Danaher had a net margin of 16.33% and a return on equity of 10.82%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.09 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Danaher Co. will post 7.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Danaher Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 27th were issued a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.53%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 27th. Danaher’s dividend payout ratio is presently 20.45%.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Brian W. Ellis sold 5,700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $224.13, for a total transaction of $1,277,541.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 20,230 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,534,149.90. This trade represents a 21.98 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 11.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Danaher

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of DHR. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC boosted its stake in Danaher by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 1,231 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $342,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Meridian Financial Partners LLC increased its holdings in Danaher by 4.4% in the third quarter. Meridian Financial Partners LLC now owns 957 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $266,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Kovack Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Danaher by 3.4% during the third quarter. Kovack Advisors Inc. now owns 1,243 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $346,000 after buying an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Well Done LLC lifted its holdings in Danaher by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Well Done LLC now owns 3,551 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $987,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Waypoint Capital Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Danaher by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Waypoint Capital Advisors LLC now owns 4,520 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $1,257,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. 79.05% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Danaher Company Profile

Danaher Corporation designs, manufactures, and markets professional, medical, industrial, and commercial products and services worldwide. The Biotechnology segments offers bioprocess technologies, consumables, and services that advance, accelerate, and integrate the development and manufacture of therapeutics; cell line and cell culture media development services; cell culture media, process liquids and buffers for manufacturing, chromatography resins, filtration technologies, aseptic fill finish; single-use hardware and consumables and services, such as the design and installation of full manufacturing suites; lab filtration, separation, and purification; lab-scale protein purification and analytical tools; reagents, membranes, and services; and healthcare filtration solutions.