Mettler-Toledo International Inc. (NYSE:MTD) Receives Average Rating of "Hold" from Analysts

Mettler-Toledo International Inc. (NYSE:MTD - Get Free Report) has received an average rating of "Hold" from the nine ratings firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $1,351.25.

Several analysts recently weighed in on MTD shares. Citigroup raised shares of Mettler-Toledo International from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $1,200.00 to $1,300.00 in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Wolfe Research started coverage on Mettler-Toledo International in a research report on Friday, December 13th. They issued a "peer perform" rating on the stock. Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on Mettler-Toledo International from $1,375.00 to $1,310.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Mettler-Toledo International from $1,400.00 to $1,350.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on shares of Mettler-Toledo International from $1,550.00 to $1,450.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 11th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Elisha W. Finney sold 76 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,311.75, for a total transaction of $99,693.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 240 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $314,820. This represents a 24.05 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Gerry Keller sold 140 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,254.09, for a total value of $175,572.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 6 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,524.54. This trade represents a 95.89 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.94% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Mettler-Toledo International

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of MTD. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in Mettler-Toledo International by 242.9% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 24 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 17 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Mettler-Toledo International during the third quarter valued at about $37,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new stake in shares of Mettler-Toledo International during the second quarter worth about $42,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Mettler-Toledo International by 272.7% in the 3rd quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 41 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $61,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. lifted its position in Mettler-Toledo International by 60.0% in the 3rd quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 48 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $72,000 after acquiring an additional 18 shares in the last quarter. 95.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Mettler-Toledo International Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of MTD stock traded up $7.62 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $1,278.98. 193,938 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 125,604. The company has a market cap of $26.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.21 and a beta of 1.12. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $1,246.46 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $1,345.43. Mettler-Toledo International has a 1-year low of $1,133.46 and a 1-year high of $1,546.93.

Mettler-Toledo International (NYSE:MTD - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $10.21 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $10.00 by $0.21. Mettler-Toledo International had a net margin of 21.15% and a negative return on equity of 531.78%. The business had revenue of $954.54 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $941.93 million. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Mettler-Toledo International will post 40.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Mettler-Toledo International

Mettler-Toledo International Inc manufactures and supplies precision instruments and services in the Americas, Europe, Asia, and internationally. It operates through five segments: U.S. Operations, Swiss Operations, Western European Operations, Chinese Operations, and Other. The company's laboratory instruments include laboratory balances, liquid pipetting solutions, automated laboratory reactors, real-time analytics, titrators, pH meters, process analytics sensors and analyzer technologies, physical value analyzers, density and refractometry, thermal analysis systems, and other analytical instruments; and LabX, a laboratory software platform to manage and analyze data generated from its instruments.