BlackRock Inc. Acquires Shares of 55,084,630 Danaher Corporation $DHR

Key Points

• BlackRock acquired 55.1 million Danaher shares worth approximately $10.5 billion, giving it a 7.84% stake. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 79.05% of the company.
• Analysts maintain a broadly positive outlook, with Danaher receiving a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $228.91, despite several recent target-price reductions.
• Danaher exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $1.94 in EPS versus the $1.85 consensus and $6.26 billion in revenue, up 5.5% year over year.

BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in Danaher Corporation (NYSE:DHR - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 55,084,630 shares of the conglomerate's stock, valued at approximately $10,492,520,000. BlackRock Inc. owned 7.84% of Danaher as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Bell Investment Advisors Inc purchased a new position in shares of Danaher in the 2nd quarter valued at about $47,000. State of Wyoming purchased a new position in Danaher during the second quarter worth approximately $74,000. Elevated Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Danaher in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Danaher in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Finally, Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd increased its position in shares of Danaher by 71.6% in the fourth quarter. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd now owns 127 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. 79.05% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. UBS Group reduced their target price on Danaher from $270.00 to $250.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on shares of Danaher from $260.00 to $220.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "buy" rating and set a $245.00 price objective on shares of Danaher in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Evercore reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $230.00 price objective on shares of Danaher in a report on Monday, July 6th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $240.00 target price on shares of Danaher in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have given a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Danaher presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $228.91.

Danaher Stock Performance

NYSE DHR opened at $202.44 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $142.31 billion, a PE ratio of 35.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.78. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $193.52 and its 200-day simple moving average is $192.67. Danaher Corporation has a 1-year low of $160.93 and a 1-year high of $242.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 1.65 and a quick ratio of 1.25.

Danaher (NYSE:DHR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 20th. The conglomerate reported $1.94 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.85 by $0.09. Danaher had a return on equity of 11.04% and a net margin of 15.95%.The firm had revenue of $6.26 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.12 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.77 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Danaher Corporation will post 8.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Danaher Profile

Danaher Corporation NYSE: DHR is a global science and technology company that designs, manufactures and markets products and services for the life sciences, diagnostics, and environmental and applied markets. The company organizes its operations into business segments focused on Life Sciences, Diagnostics, and Environmental & Applied Solutions, supplying instruments, reagents, software and related services that support research, clinical testing, biopharmaceutical development, and industrial and environmental monitoring.

Products and services in Danaher's portfolio include analytical and diagnostic instruments, laboratory consumables and reagents, digital and software solutions for workflow and data management, field and industrial monitoring equipment, and service and maintenance programs.

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