Mettler-Toledo International (NYSE:MTD) Coverage Initiated at Rothschild & Co Redburn

Key Points

• Rothschild & Co Redburn initiated coverage with a “sell” rating on Mettler-Toledo International and a $1,200 price target, implying 12.69% downside from the prior close.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed but averages to a “hold” rating, with six buys, eight holds and one sell; the consensus price target is $1,445.31.
• Mettler-Toledo recently beat quarterly earnings expectations, reporting $11.46 in EPS versus $10.78 expected, while revenue rose 4.5% year over year to $1.03 billion. Insiders have sold about $6.1 million of stock over the past 90 days.

Stock analysts at Rothschild & Co Redburn began coverage on shares of Mettler-Toledo International (NYSE:MTD - Get Free Report) in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, Briefing.com reports. The brokerage set a "sell" rating and a $1,200.00 price target on the medical instruments supplier's stock. Rothschild & Co Redburn's price objective indicates a potential downside of 12.69% from the company's previous close.

MTD has been the subject of several other reports. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Mettler-Toledo International in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. They issued a "peer perform" rating for the company. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Mettler-Toledo International from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Mettler-Toledo International from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Mettler-Toledo International from $1,413.00 to $1,200.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on Mettler-Toledo International from $1,445.00 to $1,194.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Mettler-Toledo International currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $1,445.31.

Mettler-Toledo International Trading Down 2.2%

Shares of Mettler-Toledo International stock opened at $1,374.47 on Wednesday. Mettler-Toledo International has a 12-month low of $1,023.05 and a 12-month high of $1,525.17. The company has a market cap of $27.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.94, a PEG ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a current ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 159.45. The company's 50-day moving average price is $1,354.48 and its 200-day moving average price is $1,274.20.

Mettler-Toledo International (NYSE:MTD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 31st. The medical instruments supplier reported $11.46 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $10.78 by $0.68. The company had revenue of $1.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.03 billion. Mettler-Toledo International had a net margin of 21.91% and a negative return on equity of 1,212.14%. Mettler-Toledo International's revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $10.09 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Mettler-Toledo International will post 47.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Mettler-Toledo International

In other news, CFO Shawn Vadala sold 2,240 shares of Mettler-Toledo International stock in a transaction on Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,432.00, for a total transaction of $3,207,680.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 5,579 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,989,128. The trade was a 28.65% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Gerry Keller sold 240 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,427.14, for a total transaction of $342,513.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 259 shares of the company's stock, valued at $369,629.26. This trade represents a 48.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 4,254 shares of company stock worth $6,092,712. Corporate insiders own 0.71% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Mettler-Toledo International

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. XXEC Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Mettler-Toledo International during the 2nd quarter valued at about $77,044,000. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its stake in Mettler-Toledo International by 114,807.7% in the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 35,100,865 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $44,841,706,000 after buying an additional 35,070,318 shares in the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in Mettler-Toledo International in the second quarter worth approximately $2,404,713,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in Mettler-Toledo International during the second quarter valued at approximately $762,553,000. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in Mettler-Toledo International by 908.6% during the second quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 459,064 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $586,459,000 after acquiring an additional 413,547 shares during the last quarter. 95.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Mettler-Toledo International

Mettler-Toledo International Inc is a global manufacturer and distributor of precision instruments and services for laboratory, industrial and food retail applications. The company's product portfolio includes laboratory balances and analytical instruments, industrial weighing systems, process analytics and sensors, metal detection and x-ray inspection equipment, checkweighers, and a range of automated inspection and data-management solutions. Mettler-Toledo also provides software, calibration and lifecycle services intended to support compliance, quality control and operational efficiency across customer facilities.

The company serves a broad set of end markets including pharmaceutical and biotech laboratories, chemical and food processors, logistics and manufacturing operations, and retail environments where accurate weighing and inspection are critical.

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