Bruker (NASDAQ:BRKR) Shares Down 2.4% - Here's What Happened

Bruker Co. (NASDAQ:BRKR - Get Free Report) was down 2.4% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $61.19 and last traded at $61.60. Approximately 159,914 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 85% from the average daily volume of 1,037,591 shares. The stock had previously closed at $63.11.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on BRKR shares. Barclays started coverage on Bruker in a research note on Tuesday. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $75.00 target price on the stock. TD Cowen cut their price objective on Bruker from $74.00 to $72.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price objective on Bruker from $72.00 to $60.00 and set a "sell" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on Bruker in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $78.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Citigroup cut their price objective on Bruker from $95.00 to $80.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $80.82.

Bruker Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a current ratio of 1.65. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $65.15 and a 200 day moving average price of $69.44. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.28, a PEG ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 1.18.

Bruker (NASDAQ:BRKR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The medical research company reported $0.52 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.52. Bruker had a return on equity of 24.92% and a net margin of 11.29%. The firm had revenue of $800.70 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $799.44 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.50 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 17.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Bruker Co. will post 2.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bruker Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Investors of record on Monday, September 2nd were given a $0.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 30th. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.33%. Bruker's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 7.27%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bruker

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BRKR. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its position in Bruker by 127.8% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,389,537 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $88,666,000 after acquiring an additional 779,549 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. bought a new position in Bruker in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $36,472,000. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Bruker by 123.6% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 555,468 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $35,444,000 after acquiring an additional 307,021 shares in the last quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. lifted its position in Bruker by 78.3% in the 2nd quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 593,091 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $37,845,000 after acquiring an additional 260,363 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Point72 Europe London LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Bruker by 262.9% during the 2nd quarter. Point72 Europe London LLP now owns 333,997 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $21,312,000 after buying an additional 241,959 shares during the period. 79.52% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Bruker

Bruker Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, develops, manufactures, and distributes scientific instruments, and analytical and diagnostic solutions in the United States, Europe, the Asia Pacific, and internationally. The company operates through four segments: Bruker Scientific Instruments (BSI) BioSpin, BSI CALID, BSI Nano, and Bruker Energy & Supercon Technologies.