Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Cuts Stake in Danaher Corporation $DHR

Key Points

• Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group reduced its stake in Danaher by 2.5% in Q4, selling 54,304 shares and ending the quarter with 2,103,448 shares worth about $481.5 million (roughly 0.30% of the company).
• Danaher beat Q4 estimates with $2.23 EPS vs. $2.14 expected and $6.84 billion in revenue (up 4.6% YoY), and the company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.40 ($1.60 annualized, ~0.8% yield).
• Analysts remain broadly positive with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $251.35, despite mixed recent target moves (e.g., Jefferies cut to $240 while Leerink raised to $270).

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. reduced its holdings in shares of Danaher Corporation (NYSE:DHR - Free Report) by 2.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,103,448 shares of the conglomerate's stock after selling 54,304 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. owned about 0.30% of Danaher worth $481,521,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. JPL Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Danaher during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. WFA of San Diego LLC purchased a new stake in Danaher during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $26,000. ANTIPODES PARTNERS Ltd purchased a new stake in Danaher during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. TruNorth Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Danaher during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Tripletail Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Danaher during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. 79.05% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently weighed in on DHR. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on shares of Danaher from $265.00 to $240.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Leerink Partners increased their price objective on shares of Danaher from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Wolfe Research dropped their price objective on shares of Danaher from $260.00 to $230.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Evercore dropped their price objective on shares of Danaher from $254.00 to $225.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Danaher in a research report on Friday, March 27th. Eighteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Danaher has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $251.35.

Danaher Trading Down 1.7%

Shares of Danaher stock opened at $189.69 on Friday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $201.03 and a 200-day simple moving average of $214.48. Danaher Corporation has a 12-month low of $178.78 and a 12-month high of $242.80. The company has a current ratio of 1.87, a quick ratio of 1.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The stock has a market cap of $134.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.64, a PEG ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.95.

Danaher (NYSE:DHR - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, January 27th. The conglomerate reported $2.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.14 by $0.09. Danaher had a net margin of 14.71% and a return on equity of 10.81%. The business had revenue of $6.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.79 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.14 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast 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. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 27th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 27th. This is a positive change from Danaher's previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. Danaher's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 31.75%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Gregory M. Milosevich sold 1,320 shares of the company's stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 5,099 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,060,642.99. This represents a 20.56% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 11.10% of the company's stock.

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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