Strategic Planning Group LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Danaher Co. (NYSE:DHR)

Strategic Planning Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Danaher Co. (NYSE:DHR - Free Report) by 30.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 18,649 shares of the conglomerate's stock after purchasing an additional 4,373 shares during the period. Strategic Planning Group LLC's holdings in Danaher were worth $3,823,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Danaher in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Danaher during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Hurley Capital LLC bought a new stake in Danaher during the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. Pineridge Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Danaher by 63.3% in the fourth quarter. Pineridge Advisors LLC now owns 147 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 57 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rialto Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Danaher in the fourth quarter worth approximately $34,000. 79.05% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Danaher Trading Down 0.6%

DHR traded down $1.16 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $191.92. 3,096,463 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,476,559. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $191.68 and a 200 day moving average price of $212.83. Danaher Co. has a 52-week low of $171.00 and a 52-week high of $281.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $137.35 billion, a PE ratio of 36.35, a PEG ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 0.80.

Danaher (NYSE:DHR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The conglomerate reported $1.88 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.62 by $0.26. Danaher had a net margin of 16.33% and a return on equity of 10.82%. The firm had revenue of $5.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.58 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Danaher Co. will post 7.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Danaher Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 25th. Investors of record on Friday, June 27th will be issued a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.67%. Danaher's payout ratio is 24.85%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have commented on DHR. HSBC reduced their target price on Danaher from $270.00 to $240.00 in a report on Friday, April 25th. Citigroup reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Danaher in a report on Monday, April 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Danaher from $280.00 to $260.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Danaher from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Sunday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on shares of Danaher from $260.00 to $230.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Danaher presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $263.24.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Chairman Steven M. Rales sold 1,250,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $196.74, for a total transaction of $245,925,000.00. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 3,105,808 shares in the company, valued at approximately $611,036,665.92. This trade represents a 28.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Christopher Paul Riley sold 15,805 shares of Danaher stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $198.00, for a total value of $3,129,390.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 15,179 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,005,442. The trade was a 51.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 11.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Danaher

Danaher Corporation designs, manufactures, and markets professional, medical, industrial, and commercial products and services worldwide. The Biotechnology segments offers bioprocess technologies, consumables, and services that advance, accelerate, and integrate the development and manufacture of therapeutics; cell line and cell culture media development services; cell culture media, process liquids and buffers for manufacturing, chromatography resins, filtration technologies, aseptic fill finish; single-use hardware and consumables and services, such as the design and installation of full manufacturing suites; lab filtration, separation, and purification; lab-scale protein purification and analytical tools; reagents, membranes, and services; and healthcare filtration solutions.