Danaher Corporation $DHR Shares Sold by Securian Asset Management Inc.

Key Points

• Securian Asset Management cut its Danaher stake by 46.7% in the fourth quarter, selling 14,985 shares and leaving it with 17,094 shares worth about $3.9 million.
• Danaher continues to attract mostly favorable Wall Street sentiment, with 18 Buy ratings and 3 Hold ratings; the stock’s consensus rating is Moderate Buy with a price target of $240.70.
• The company recently reported Q1 earnings of $2.06 per share, beating estimates, and also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.40 per share to be paid on July 31.

Securian Asset Management Inc. cut its stake in shares of Danaher Corporation (NYSE:DHR - Free Report) by 46.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 17,094 shares of the conglomerate's stock after selling 14,985 shares during the period. Securian Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Danaher were worth $3,913,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Pure Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Danaher in the fourth quarter valued at about $251,000. Osprey Private Wealth LLC lifted its position in Danaher by 37.3% in the fourth quarter. Osprey Private Wealth LLC now owns 21,105 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $4,831,000 after buying an additional 5,730 shares during the last quarter. Income Insurance Ltd purchased a new stake in Danaher in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $440,000. Advisor OS LLC boosted its position in shares of Danaher by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Advisor OS LLC now owns 6,103 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $1,397,000 after buying an additional 118 shares during the period. Finally, Nan Fung Trinity HK Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Danaher by 66.8% during the fourth quarter. Nan Fung Trinity HK Ltd. now owns 98,600 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $22,572,000 after buying an additional 39,500 shares during the period. 79.05% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

DHR has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a "buy" rating on shares of Danaher in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Leerink Partners increased their price target on shares of Danaher from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, January 16th. KeyCorp reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of Danaher in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Danaher from $250.00 to $230.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. Finally, Evercore increased their price target on shares of Danaher from $225.00 to $232.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Eighteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Danaher currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $240.70.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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 value of $274,573.20. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 5,099 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,060,642.99. This trade represents a 20.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 10.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Danaher Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of DHR opened at $170.98 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $121.01 billion, a PE ratio of 33.07, a P/E/G ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.81. Danaher Corporation has a 1 year low of $170.74 and a 1 year high of $242.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 1.52 and a current ratio of 1.87. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $191.25 and its 200-day simple moving average is $212.54.

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

Danaher Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 31st. Investors of record on Friday, June 26th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 26th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. Danaher's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.95%.

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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