Ceredex Value Advisors LLC Takes $14.34 Million Position in Bruker Co. (NASDAQ:BRKR)

Ceredex Value Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Bruker Co. (NASDAQ:BRKR) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 244,700 shares of the medical research company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,344,000. Ceredex Value Advisors LLC owned about 0.16% of Bruker as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in shares of Bruker by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 13,287 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $779,000 after acquiring an additional 177 shares during the last quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC grew its position in Bruker by 18.2% during the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 1,273 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $75,000 after purchasing an additional 196 shares during the last quarter. Insigneo Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in Bruker by 4.7% during the 4th quarter. Insigneo Advisory Services LLC now owns 4,880 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $286,000 after purchasing an additional 218 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System raised its holdings in Bruker by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 30,725 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,801,000 after buying an additional 222 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc lifted its stake in shares of Bruker by 5.6% in the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 4,233 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $248,000 after buying an additional 223 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.52% of the company’s stock.

Bruker Price Performance

NASDAQ BRKR opened at $37.74 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $5.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 49.66, a PEG ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 1.18. Bruker Co. has a 12 month low of $34.10 and a 12 month high of $84.90. The company’s 50 day moving average is $45.10 and its two-hundred day moving average is $54.20. The company has a current ratio of 1.60, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15.

Bruker (NASDAQ:BRKR) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The medical research company reported $0.76 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.75 by $0.01. Bruker had a net margin of 3.36% and a return on equity of 21.01%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Bruker Co. will post 2.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Bruker Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th were paid a dividend of $0.05 per share. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.53%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 17th. Bruker’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.32%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Bruker from $75.00 to $50.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Barclays decreased their price target on Bruker from $60.00 to $50.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Bruker in a research report on Monday, February 24th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on shares of Bruker from $70.00 to $57.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Bruker currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $66.50.

Bruker Company Profile

Bruker Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, develops, manufactures, and distributes scientific instruments, and analytical and diagnostic solutions in the United States, Europe, the Asia Pacific, and internationally. The company operates through four segments: Bruker Scientific Instruments (BSI) BioSpin, BSI CALID, BSI Nano, and Bruker Energy & Supercon Technologies.