Danaher Co. (NYSE:DHR) Stake Lifted by Mendel Money Management

Mendel Money Management increased its position in Danaher Co. (NYSE:DHR) by 0.8% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 22,447 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after purchasing an additional 179 shares during the quarter. Danaher accounts for approximately 2.3% of Mendel Money Management’s holdings, making the stock its 9th biggest holding. Mendel Money Management’s holdings in Danaher were worth $5,153,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Heck Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Danaher during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. bought a new stake in Danaher during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Danaher during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Danaher in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Pineridge Advisors LLC increased its position in Danaher by 63.3% during the 4th quarter. Pineridge Advisors LLC now owns 147 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 57 shares in the last quarter. 79.05% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Danaher Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of DHR stock opened at $212.36 on Wednesday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $216.41 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $237.75. Danaher Co. has a 52-week low of $196.80 and a 52-week high of $281.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $151.78 billion, a PE ratio of 40.22, a PEG ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.40.

Danaher (NYSE:DHR) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The conglomerate reported $2.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $2.14. Danaher had a return on equity of 10.82% and a net margin of 16.33%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.09 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Danaher Co. will post 7.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Danaher Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 28th will be issued a $0.32 dividend. This is an increase from Danaher’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.60%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 28th. Danaher’s payout ratio is currently 24.24%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Danaher from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $260.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, March 21st. Bank of America upgraded shares of Danaher from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $290.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, December 13th. Citigroup reduced their target price on Danaher from $285.00 to $265.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Raymond James reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Danaher in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on Danaher from $285.00 to $260.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $278.24.

Insider Buying and Selling at Danaher

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

About Danaher

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.