Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. Sells 27,000 Shares of Bruker Co. (NASDAQ:BRKR)

Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of Bruker Co. (NASDAQ:BRKR - Free Report) by 61.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 17,100 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 27,000 shares during the quarter. Polar Asset Management Partners Inc.'s holdings in Bruker were worth $1,002,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Gordian Capital Singapore Pte Ltd acquired a new position in Bruker in the fourth quarter valued at about $234,000. EDENTREE ASSET MANAGEMENT Ltd grew its position in Bruker by 11.2% in the fourth quarter. EDENTREE ASSET MANAGEMENT Ltd now owns 158,000 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $9,262,000 after acquiring an additional 15,900 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its holdings in shares of Bruker by 17.1% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 356,969 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $20,926,000 after purchasing an additional 52,214 shares during the last quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Bruker by 179.6% during the fourth quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 18,906 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $1,108,000 after purchasing an additional 12,145 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Two Sigma Advisers LP grew its holdings in shares of Bruker by 406.1% during the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 140,700 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $8,248,000 after purchasing an additional 112,900 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.52% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on BRKR shares. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price objective on Bruker from $50.00 to $45.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. UBS Group cut their price objective on Bruker from $57.00 to $45.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note 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. Citigroup lowered Bruker from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating and dropped their price target for the company from $50.00 to $40.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, Guggenheim reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Bruker in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $59.10.

Bruker Stock Down 1.7%

Shares of NASDAQ:BRKR traded down $0.63 during trading on Friday, reaching $36.63. 1,470,266 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,614,427. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.60 and a quick ratio of 0.77. Bruker Co. has a 1-year low of $34.10 and a 1-year high of $72.94. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $38.62 and a two-hundred day moving average of $49.01. The firm has a market cap of $5.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 1.23.

Bruker (NASDAQ:BRKR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The medical research company reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.46 by $0.01. Bruker had a return on equity of 21.01% and a net margin of 3.36%. The business had revenue of $801.40 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $763.83 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.53 earnings per share. Bruker's revenue was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Bruker Co. will post 2.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bruker Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 27th. Investors of record on Monday, June 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.05 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 16th. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.55%. Bruker's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 38.46%.

Bruker Profile

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.