Danaher Co. (NYSE:DHR) Shares Sold by Ieq Capital LLC

Ieq Capital LLC reduced its position in shares of Danaher Co. (NYSE:DHR - Free Report) by 12.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 32,195 shares of the conglomerate's stock after selling 4,508 shares during the quarter. Ieq Capital LLC's holdings in Danaher were worth $7,391,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Kovack Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Danaher by 3.4% during the third quarter. Kovack Advisors Inc. now owns 1,243 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $346,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. raised its stake in shares of Danaher by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. now owns 1,749 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $401,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the period. Grimes & Company Inc. lifted its position in shares of Danaher by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Grimes & Company Inc. now owns 7,390 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $1,696,000 after buying an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. grew its stake in Danaher by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 1,531 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $426,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares during the period. Finally, Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA increased its holdings in Danaher by 16.4% in the 4th quarter. Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA now owns 320 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $73,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. 79.05% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Danaher Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE DHR traded up $1.91 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $209.86. 6,209,935 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,574,762. The stock has a market capitalization of $151.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.75, a PEG ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.40. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $227.21 and a 200 day simple moving average of $247.52. Danaher Co. has a twelve month low of $196.80 and a twelve month high of $281.70.

Danaher (NYSE:DHR - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results 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 return on equity of 10.82% and a net margin of 16.33%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.09 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Danaher Co. will post 7.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Danaher Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Investors of record on Friday, March 28th will be issued a $0.32 dividend. This is a positive change from Danaher's previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.61%. Danaher's payout ratio is 20.45%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have issued reports on DHR. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Danaher from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, December 14th. Guggenheim started coverage on shares of Danaher in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $275.00 price target on the stock. Raymond James reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of Danaher in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Scotiabank started coverage on Danaher in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. They issued a "sector perform" rating and a $265.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $277.00 price target (down from $299.00) on shares of Danaher in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $278.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Danaher

In related news, SVP Brian W. Ellis sold 5,700 shares of Danaher stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 30th. The shares were 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 in the company, 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. 11.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.