Principal Financial Group Inc. Decreases Position in Danaher Corporation $DHR

Key Points

• Principal Financial Group trimmed its Danaher stake by 1.6% in the first quarter, selling 47,548 shares and ending with 2,880,858 shares valued at about $546.2 million.
• Danaher reported better-than-expected earnings for the latest quarter, posting $2.06 EPS versus the $1.94 estimate, while revenue rose 3.7% year over year to $5.95 billion.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.40 per share, and analysts remain broadly positive with a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $231.64.

Principal Financial Group Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Danaher Corporation (NYSE:DHR - Free Report) by 1.6% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 2,880,858 shares of the conglomerate's stock after selling 47,548 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 0.41% of Danaher worth $546,214,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Elevated Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Danaher during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Danaher in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Danaher by 71.6% during the 4th 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 during the last quarter. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Danaher during the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. Finally, WFA of San Diego LLC bought a new stake in shares of Danaher in the second quarter worth $26,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.05% of the company's stock.

Danaher Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE DHR opened at $200.45 on Tuesday. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $181.02 and its 200 day simple moving average is $199.06. The stock has a market capitalization of $141.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.77, a PEG ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a quick ratio of 1.52, a current ratio of 1.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. Danaher Corporation has a 52-week low of $160.93 and a 52-week high of $242.80.

Danaher (NYSE:DHR - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, April 20th. The conglomerate reported $2.06 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.94 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $5.95 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6 billion. Danaher had a return on equity of 10.91% and a net margin of 14.89%.Danaher's revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.88 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Danaher Corporation will post 8.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Danaher Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 26th will be given a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 26th. Danaher's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.95%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

DHR has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Citigroup started coverage on shares of Danaher in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $230.00 target price on the stock. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $205.00 target price on shares of Danaher in a report on Friday, April 17th. 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. TD Cowen reduced their price objective on Danaher from $245.00 to $240.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Wolfe Research lowered Danaher from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research report on Monday, June 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $231.64.

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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