Danaher Corporation $DHR Stake Lifted by Whittier Trust Co.

Key Points

• Whittier Trust Co. increased its Danaher stake by 12.2% in Q4 to 292,894 shares worth about $69.3 million, making DHR its 26th-largest holding, and overall institutional ownership stands around 79%.
• Earnings beat: Danaher reported Q4 EPS of $2.23 vs. $2.14 expected and revenue of $6.84 billion (+4.6% YoY); the stock trades at a P/E of about 38.4 with a market cap near $136.9 billion.
• Dividend and analyst outlook: Danaher raised its quarterly dividend to $0.40 (annualized $1.60, yield ~0.8%), and analysts are mostly positive (18 Buys, 3 Holds) with an average price target of $246.50 amid mixed target revisions.

Whittier Trust Co. increased its stake in Danaher Corporation (NYSE:DHR - Free Report) by 12.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 292,894 shares of the conglomerate's stock after acquiring an additional 31,790 shares during the period. Danaher makes up approximately 0.8% of Whittier Trust Co.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest position. Whittier Trust Co.'s holdings in Danaher were worth $69,296,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Lipe & Dalton boosted its holdings in Danaher by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Lipe & Dalton now owns 21,641 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $4,954,000 after buying an additional 573 shares in the last quarter. CM Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Danaher by 79.5% during the fourth quarter. CM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,211 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $507,000 after buying an additional 979 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in Danaher by 41.8% during the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 168,163 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $38,496,000 after buying an additional 49,559 shares in the last quarter. Slow Capital Inc. boosted its holdings in Danaher by 10.0% during the fourth quarter. Slow Capital Inc. now owns 12,362 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $2,832,000 after buying an additional 1,119 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pursuit Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Danaher during the fourth quarter worth approximately $635,000. 79.05% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Leerink Partners raised their target price on shares of Danaher from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, January 16th. KeyCorp restated an "overweight" rating on shares of Danaher in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Danaher in a report on Friday, March 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on shares of Danaher from $265.00 to $230.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on shares of Danaher from $265.00 to $240.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Eighteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $246.50.

Insider Activity

In other Danaher news, EVP Gregory M. Milosevich sold 1,320 shares of Danaher stock in a transaction 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 completion of 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 10.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Danaher Price Performance

Shares of DHR opened at $193.38 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $136.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.37, a P/E/G ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 0.95. Danaher Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $180.03 and a fifty-two week high of $242.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.87 and a quick ratio of 1.51. The business's 50-day moving average is $199.25 and its 200-day moving average is $214.62.

Danaher (NYSE:DHR - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, January 27th. The conglomerate reported $2.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.14 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $6.84 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.79 billion. Danaher had a return on equity of 10.81% and a net margin of 14.71%.The firm's quarterly revenue was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.14 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Danaher Corporation will post 7.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Danaher Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 27th will be paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This is an increase from Danaher's previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 27th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Danaher's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 31.75%.

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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