Mettler-Toledo International, Inc. (NYSE:MTD) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by Analysts

Key Points

• Analysts give Mettler-Toledo a consensus "Moderate Buy" from 13 firms (7 buy, 6 hold) with an average 12‑month price target of $1,463.75; recent notes include upgrades from Bank of America and Wall Street Zen and target trims from Barclays and Morgan Stanley.
• MTD beat expectations last quarter with $13.36 EPS vs. $12.76 consensus and revenue of $1.13B (+8.1% YoY), while the stock trades at a market cap of about $26.9B and a P/E of 31.58.
• CFO Shawn Vadala sold 800 shares for roughly $1.13M (a 13.14% reduction in his holding); insiders own 0.71% of the stock while institutional investors hold about 95.07%.

Mettler-Toledo International, Inc. (NYSE:MTD - Get Free Report) has earned an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the thirteen research firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and seven have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $1,463.75.

Several brokerages recently weighed in on MTD. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Mettler-Toledo International from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, February 14th. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Mettler-Toledo International from $1,600.00 to $1,550.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Bank of America raised shares of Mettler-Toledo International from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $1,600.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Mettler-Toledo International from $1,550.00 to $1,475.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Mettler-Toledo International in a research report on Monday, December 29th.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Shawn Vadala sold 800 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,410.12, for a total transaction of $1,128,096.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 5,288 shares in the company, valued at $7,456,714.56. This represents a 13.14% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.71% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Mettler-Toledo International

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in MTD. Reflection Asset Management purchased a new position in Mettler-Toledo International during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Elyxium Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Mettler-Toledo International during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its holdings in Mettler-Toledo International by 42.1% during the 3rd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 27 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 8 shares in the last quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. increased its holdings in Mettler-Toledo International by 2,700.0% during the 3rd quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 28 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. Finally, DV Equities LLC purchased a new position in Mettler-Toledo International during the 4th quarter valued at about $40,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.07% of the company's stock.

Mettler-Toledo International Stock Up 0.6%

MTD stock opened at $1,330.10 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.58, a P/E/G ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 1.43. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $1,302.70 and a 200-day simple moving average of $1,363.84. Mettler-Toledo International has a 52 week low of $962.54 and a 52 week high of $1,525.17.

Mettler-Toledo International (NYSE:MTD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 6th. The medical instruments supplier reported $13.36 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $12.76 by $0.60. The firm had revenue of $1.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.10 billion. Mettler-Toledo International had a net margin of 21.59% and a negative return on equity of 495.07%. Mettler-Toledo International's quarterly revenue was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $12.41 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that Mettler-Toledo International will post 42.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Mettler-Toledo International Company Profile

Mettler-Toledo International Inc is a global manufacturer and distributor of precision instruments and services for laboratory, industrial and food retail applications. The company's product portfolio includes laboratory balances and analytical instruments, industrial weighing systems, process analytics and sensors, metal detection and x-ray inspection equipment, checkweighers, and a range of automated inspection and data-management solutions. Mettler-Toledo also provides software, calibration and lifecycle services intended to support compliance, quality control and operational efficiency across customer facilities.

The company serves a broad set of end markets including pharmaceutical and biotech laboratories, chemical and food processors, logistics and manufacturing operations, and retail environments where accurate weighing and inspection are critical.

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