Danaher Corporation (NYSE:DHR) Stock Now Rated "Moderate Buy" by Sell-Side Brokerages

Key Points

• Danaher has a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating among 23 analysts, including 17 buys and two strong buys. The average 12-month price target is $235.23, compared with a share price of $220.15.
• Danaher reported quarterly revenue of $6.26 billion and earnings of $1.94 per share, exceeding analyst estimates; revenue increased 5.5% year over year.
• Institutional investors own approximately 79.05% of Danaher’s stock, while the company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.40 per share, implying a 0.7% annual yield.

Danaher Corporation (NYSE:DHR - Get Free Report) has received a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the twenty-three analysts that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $235.23.

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on DHR shares. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on Danaher from $210.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, September 21st. Evercore reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $230.00 target price on shares of Danaher in a report on Monday, July 6th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on shares of Danaher from $260.00 to $220.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Danaher from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 16th. Finally, UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Danaher in a report on Wednesday, September 9th. They set a "buy" rating and a $250.00 price objective on the stock.

Institutional Trading of Danaher

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. EP Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Danaher during the second quarter worth about $3,807,000. Puzo Michael J purchased a new stake in Danaher in the 2nd quarter valued at about $8,624,000. Madison Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Danaher in the 2nd quarter valued at about $85,451,000. First Nebraska Trust Co acquired a new position in shares of Danaher during the 2nd quarter valued at about $14,106,000. Finally, Colton Groome Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Danaher during the 3rd quarter worth about $592,000. 79.05% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Danaher Stock Performance

Shares of DHR opened at $220.15 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $154.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.10, a P/E/G ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a current ratio of 1.65. Danaher has a 1 year low of $160.93 and a 1 year high of $242.80. The company's fifty day moving average is $211.38 and its two-hundred day moving average is $194.62.

Danaher (NYSE:DHR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 20th. The conglomerate reported $1.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.85 by $0.09. Danaher had a net margin of 15.95% and a return on equity of 11.04%. The business had revenue of $6.26 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.12 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.77 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Danaher will post 8.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Danaher Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 30th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 30th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 30th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Danaher's dividend payout ratio is currently 28.42%.

About Danaher

Danaher Corporation NYSE: DHR is a global science and technology company that develops and manufactures products, services and solutions for the life sciences, diagnostics and biotechnology industries. Its offerings help researchers, healthcare professionals and biopharmaceutical manufacturers discover, develop, produce and analyze medicines and other biological products.

The company operates through businesses that provide laboratory instruments, consumables, software and services, including technologies for cell analysis, genomics, protein research, bioprocessing and clinical diagnostics.

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