Bruker Corporation (NASDAQ:BRKR) Stock Rated "Moderate Buy" by Wall Street Brokerages

Key Points

• Analyst sentiment is moderately positive: Fourteen analysts give Bruker an average “Moderate Buy” rating, with an average 12-month price target of $59.43. Recent targets range from $60 to $80, though JPMorgan downgraded the stock to “neutral.”
• Bruker exceeded quarterly earnings expectations: The company reported EPS of $0.49 versus the $0.38 consensus estimate, while revenue reached $838.5 million, up 5.2% year over year but below analyst expectations.
• Shares traded at $55.69 after declining 2.4%: Institutional investors own 79.52% of the stock, while insiders hold 27.2%; Bruker also pays a quarterly dividend of $0.05 per share, yielding 0.4% annually.

Shares of Bruker Corporation (NASDAQ:BRKR - Get Free Report) have received an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the fourteen analysts that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $59.43.

Several research firms have weighed in on BRKR. TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of Bruker from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded Bruker from an "overweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $60.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, October 14th. UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of Bruker in a report on Wednesday, September 9th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $65.00 price target for the company. Leerink Partners increased their target price on shares of Bruker from $60.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 29th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on Bruker from $58.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 7th.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Mark Munch sold 2,000 shares of Bruker stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.87, for a total transaction of $105,740.00. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 134,806 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,127,193.22. This trade represents a 1.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 27.20% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Bruker

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of BRKR. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Bruker during the 2nd quarter worth $570,746,000. Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A. acquired a new position in shares of Bruker during the second quarter valued at about $169,899,000. Sculptor Capital LP raised its position in shares of Bruker by 9.0% in the 1st quarter. Sculptor Capital LP now owns 3,270,000 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $118,112,000 after purchasing an additional 270,000 shares during the last quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. grew its position in Bruker by 86.2% during the 2nd quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 1,410,164 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $84,864,000 after purchasing an additional 653,007 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in Bruker by 23.7% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,341,518 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $84,556,000 after purchasing an additional 448,440 shares during the last quarter. 79.52% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Bruker Stock Down 2.4%

Bruker stock opened at $55.69 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $8.48 billion, a PE ratio of -79.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 1.85. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $58.82 and a 200 day moving average of $50.38. Bruker has a one year low of $32.37 and a one year high of $66.98.

Bruker (NASDAQ:BRKR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The medical research company reported $0.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.38 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $838.50 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $853.57 million. Bruker had a positive return on equity of 12.47% and a negative net margin of 2.35%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.32 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Bruker will post 2.12 EPS for the current year.

Bruker Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 21st were given a dividend of $0.05 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 21st. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Bruker's dividend payout ratio is presently -28.57%.

Bruker Company Profile

Bruker Corporation develops and manufactures scientific instruments, analytical systems and related software used to study materials, molecules and biological processes. Its technologies support research, discovery and quality control in fields including life sciences, pharmaceutical development, chemical analysis, materials science, environmental testing and clinical research.

The company's product portfolio includes nuclear magnetic resonance and electron paramagnetic resonance systems, mass spectrometers, infrared and Raman spectroscopy instruments, X-ray analysis equipment, microscopy and nanoanalysis systems, and preclinical imaging technologies.

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