Bank of America Cuts Bruker (NASDAQ:BRKR) Price Target to $50.00

Bruker (NASDAQ:BRKR - Free Report) had its price objective trimmed by Bank of America from $61.00 to $50.00 in a research report sent to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a buy rating on the medical research company's stock.

A number of other research firms have also recently weighed in on BRKR. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Bruker from $75.00 to $60.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on Bruker from $50.00 to $45.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Barclays dropped their price target on Bruker from $50.00 to $46.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on Bruker from $57.00 to $48.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their target price on Bruker from $57.00 to $45.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $52.89.

Bruker Trading Down 0.9%

NASDAQ BRKR traded down $0.38 on Thursday, reaching $41.80. The company had a trading volume of 5,247,913 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,697,431. The stock's 50 day moving average is $38.52 and its 200-day moving average is $46.41. Bruker has a 52 week low of $34.10 and a 52 week high of $72.94. The stock has a market cap of $6.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 80.38, a PEG ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a quick ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13.

Bruker (NASDAQ:BRKR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The medical research company reported $0.47 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.46 by $0.01. Bruker had a net margin of 2.31% and a return on equity of 19.47%. The company had revenue of $801.40 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $763.83 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.53 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Bruker will post 2.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Bruker Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 27th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th were paid a $0.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 16th. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.48%. Bruker's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 38.46%.

Insider Activity at Bruker

In related news, CEO Frank H. Laukien purchased 2,608 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 6th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $38.36 per share, with a total value of $100,042.88. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 38,462,171 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,475,408,879.56. The trade was a 0.01% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 27.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Bruker in the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. Allworth Financial LP boosted its holdings in Bruker by 92.4% during the first quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 758 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 364 shares in the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd boosted its holdings in Bruker by 1,354.5% during the first quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 800 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 745 shares in the last quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Bruker in the first quarter worth $42,000. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its stake in shares of Bruker by 274.9% during the first quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,091 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 800 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.52% of the company's stock.

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.