Donaldson Capital Management LLC lowered its position in Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (NYSE:TMO - Free Report) by 89.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 715 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 6,026 shares during the period. Donaldson Capital Management LLC's holdings in Thermo Fisher Scientific were worth $372,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in TMO. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new stake in shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific during the third quarter worth approximately $26,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in Thermo Fisher Scientific during the 3rd quarter worth about $27,000. Barrett & Company Inc. bought a new stake in Thermo Fisher Scientific in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. acquired a new position in Thermo Fisher Scientific during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Missouri Trust & Investment Co bought a new position in shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Institutional investors own 89.23% of the company's stock.
Thermo Fisher Scientific Stock Performance
Shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific stock opened at $514.40 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $549.14 and a 200-day moving average of $560.79. The company has a market cap of $194.06 billion, a PE ratio of 31.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a current ratio of 1.66, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. has a 1-year low of $493.30 and a 1-year high of $627.88.
Thermo Fisher Scientific (NYSE:TMO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The medical research company reported $6.10 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $5.94 by $0.16. Thermo Fisher Scientific had a return on equity of 17.51% and a net margin of 14.78%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. will post 23.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Thermo Fisher Scientific announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Friday, November 15th that permits the company to buyback $4.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the medical research company to reacquire up to 2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often a sign that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.
Thermo Fisher Scientific Increases Dividend
The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a $0.43 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.33%. This is a positive change from Thermo Fisher Scientific's previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. Thermo Fisher Scientific's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 10.41%.
Insider Activity
In other news, SVP Michael A. Boxer sold 3,775 shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $532.52, for a total transaction of $2,010,263.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 10,816 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,759,736.32. The trade was a 25.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Stephen Williamson sold 9,825 shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $585.59, for a total value of $5,753,421.75. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 27,296 shares in the company, valued at $15,984,264.64. The trade was a 26.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 23,900 shares of company stock worth $13,106,062. Insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
TMO has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Thermo Fisher Scientific from $647.00 to $678.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada set a $693.00 target price on shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Sanford C. Bernstein raised Thermo Fisher Scientific from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $630.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific from $700.00 to $715.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Raymond James reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $667.00 price target (up previously from $650.00) on shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $653.23.
Read Our Latest Report on TMO
About Thermo Fisher Scientific
(
Free Report)
Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc provides life sciences solutions, analytical instruments, specialty diagnostics, and laboratory products and biopharma services in the North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and internationally. The company's Life Sciences Solutions segment offers reagents, instruments, and consumables for biological and medical research, discovery, and production of drugs and vaccines, as well as diagnosis of infections and diseases; and solutions include biosciences, genetic sciences, and bio production to pharmaceutical, biotechnology, agricultural, clinical, healthcare, academic, and government markets.
Further Reading
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