Heritage Trust Co acquired a new stake in Danaher Co. (NYSE:DHR - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 29,796 shares of the conglomerate's stock, valued at approximately $6,840,000.
Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Danaher in the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. acquired a new stake in Danaher in the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Danaher during the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC purchased a new position in shares of Danaher in the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Pineridge Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Danaher by 63.3% during the fourth quarter. Pineridge Advisors LLC now owns 147 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.05% of the company's stock.
Danaher Trading Up 0.7 %
Shares of DHR stock traded up $1.33 on Wednesday, reaching $191.25. 1,936,754 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,319,612. Danaher Co. has a 1-year low of $171.00 and a 1-year high of $281.70. The stock has a market cap of $136.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $202.93 and a two-hundred day moving average of $228.73.
Danaher (NYSE:DHR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The conglomerate reported $2.14 earnings per share 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 period last year, the company posted $2.09 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Danaher Co. will post 7.63 EPS for the current year.
Danaher Increases Dividend
The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Investors of record on Friday, March 28th will be given a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.67%. This is a boost from Danaher's previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 28th. Danaher's dividend payout ratio is 24.24%.
Insider Activity at Danaher
In other news, SVP Brian W. Ellis sold 5,700 shares of the company'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 completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 20,230 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,534,149.90. This represents a 21.98 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 11.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.
Analyst Ratings Changes
A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on DHR shares. Barclays raised shares of Danaher from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and reduced their price target for the company from $240.00 to $205.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Raymond James reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of Danaher in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Scotiabank assumed coverage on Danaher in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. They issued a "sector perform" rating and a $265.00 price target on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Danaher from $310.00 to $300.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Citigroup reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Danaher in a report on Monday, April 7th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $276.57.
Read Our Latest Stock Report on DHR
Danaher Company Profile
(
Free Report)
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.
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