Handelsbanken Fonder AB Boosts Position in Bruker Co. (NASDAQ:BRKR)

Handelsbanken Fonder AB increased its holdings in shares of Bruker Co. (NASDAQ:BRKR - Free Report) by 2,342.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 388,300 shares of the medical research company's stock after purchasing an additional 372,400 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB owned 0.28% of Bruker worth $28,532,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Lindbrook Capital LLC lifted its position in Bruker by 68.2% during the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 360 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 146 shares during the last quarter. Baker Tilly Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Bruker by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. Baker Tilly Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,285 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $388,000 after acquiring an additional 156 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Wealth Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Bruker by 5.7% during the fourth quarter. Legacy Wealth Asset Management LLC now owns 3,412 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $251,000 after acquiring an additional 184 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its position in Bruker by 53.3% during the third quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 541 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 188 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Treasurer of the State of North Carolina lifted its position in Bruker by 0.5% during the third quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 48,140 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $2,999,000 after acquiring an additional 235 shares during the last quarter. 79.52% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Bruker

In related news, Director Hermann Fritz Requardt sold 15,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.06, for a total transaction of $1,350,900.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 23,147 shares in the company, valued at $2,084,618.82. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 28.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Bruker from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their target price for the company from $60.00 to $90.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Bruker from $63.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Bruker from $94.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 1st. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Bruker from $80.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of Bruker from $66.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Bruker currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $84.86.

Bruker Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:BRKR traded up $4.41 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $82.46. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,083,539 shares, compared to its average volume of 801,580. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.35 billion, a PE ratio of 28.24, a P/E/G ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 1.17. Bruker Co. has a twelve month low of $53.79 and a twelve month high of $94.86. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $88.04 and a 200 day moving average of $74.39. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83.

Bruker (NASDAQ:BRKR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 13th. The medical research company reported $0.70 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.65 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $844.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $809.35 million. Bruker had a net margin of 14.41% and a return on equity of 29.94%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 19.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.74 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Bruker Co. will post 2.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bruker Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Investors of record on Friday, March 1st were given a dividend of $0.05 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 29th. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.24%. Bruker's dividend payout ratio is presently 6.85%.

About Bruker

Bruker Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, develops, manufactures, and distributes scientific instruments, and analytical and diagnostic solutions in the United States, Europe, the Asia Pacific, and internationally. The company operates through four segments: Bruker Scientific Instruments (BSI) BioSpin, BSI CALID, BSI Nano, and Bruker Energy & Supercon Technologies.