Danaher Corporation $DHR Shares Acquired by Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd

Key Points

• Swiss Life Asset Management boosted its Danaher stake by 12.1% in Q4, ending with 115,335 shares valued at about $26.4 million.
• Danaher continues to draw heavy institutional interest, with hedge funds and other investors owning 79.05% of the stock. Several firms also meaningfully increased their positions during recent quarters.
• Danaher reported better-than-expected quarterly EPS of $2.06, though revenue of $5.95 billion slightly missed estimates; the company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.40 per share.

Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Danaher Corporation (NYSE:DHR - Free Report) by 12.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 115,335 shares of the conglomerate's stock after acquiring an additional 12,416 shares during the quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd's holdings in Danaher were worth $26,402,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of DHR. Viking Global Investors LP raised its stake in Danaher by 543.9% during the second quarter. Viking Global Investors LP now owns 2,907,515 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $574,351,000 after acquiring an additional 2,455,994 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its stake in Danaher by 104.7% during the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 4,333,056 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $991,923,000 after acquiring an additional 2,216,789 shares during the period. Generation Investment Management LLP raised its stake in Danaher by 34.0% during the third quarter. Generation Investment Management LLP now owns 6,654,666 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $1,319,354,000 after acquiring an additional 1,689,020 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its stake in Danaher by 211.7% during the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,088,089 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $414,038,000 after acquiring an additional 1,418,243 shares during the period. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its stake in shares of Danaher by 33.9% in the third quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 3,519,013 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $697,680,000 after purchasing an additional 891,210 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.05% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have commented on DHR shares. Guggenheim dropped their price target on shares of Danaher from $275.00 to $235.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Danaher from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, April 25th. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Danaher in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $205.00 price target on shares of Danaher in a research note on Friday, April 17th. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on shares of Danaher from $251.00 to $249.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 17th. Eighteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Danaher presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $240.70.

Insider Activity at Danaher

In related news, EVP Gregory M. Milosevich sold 1,320 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $208.01, for a total transaction of $274,573.20. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 5,099 shares in the company, valued at $1,060,642.99. This trade represents a 20.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 10.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Danaher Price Performance

NYSE DHR opened at $166.46 on Tuesday. Danaher Corporation has a 12 month low of $165.25 and a 12 month high of $242.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 1.87 and a quick ratio of 1.52. The firm has a market capitalization of $117.82 billion, a PE ratio of 32.20, a P/E/G ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.81. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $189.62 and its 200 day simple moving average is $211.89.

Danaher (NYSE:DHR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 20th. The conglomerate reported $2.06 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.12. Danaher had a net margin of 14.89% and a return on equity of 10.91%. The business had revenue of $5.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.88 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Danaher Corporation will post 8.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Danaher Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 31st. Investors of record on Friday, June 26th will be paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 26th. Danaher's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.95%.

Danaher Company 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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