Short Interest in Bruker Corporation (NASDAQ:BRKR) Grows By 25.6%

Key Points

• Bruker Corporation's short interest rose by 25.6% in August, totaling 8,350,000 shares, which constitutes approximately 8.1% of its stock sold short.
• Insider activity showed that Director Cynthia M. Friend sold 3,535 shares at an average price of $32.25, reducing her ownership by 16.40% in a recent transaction.
• Bruker reported earnings of $0.32 per share for the last quarter, falling short of the $0.33 consensus estimate, with revenues of $797.4 million, below expectations of $811.17 million.

Bruker Corporation (NASDAQ:BRKR - Get Free Report) saw a large growth in short interest in the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totaling 8,350,000 shares, a growth of 25.6% from the August 15th total of 6,650,000 shares. Currently, 8.1% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 3,560,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.3 days. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 3,560,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.3 days. Currently, 8.1% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Bruker Price Performance

NASDAQ:BRKR traded up $1.16 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $33.27. 4,160,895 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,546,535. Bruker has a 1-year low of $28.53 and a 1-year high of $72.94. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.05 billion, a PE ratio of 63.98, a PEG ratio of 4.46 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a current ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $35.25 and a 200 day moving average price of $38.55.

Bruker (NASDAQ:BRKR - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, August 4th. The medical research company reported $0.32 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.33 by ($0.01). Bruker had a return on equity of 17.89% and a net margin of 2.31%.The firm had revenue of $797.40 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $811.17 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.52 earnings per share. The business's revenue was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. Bruker has set its FY 2025 guidance at 1.950-2.050 EPS. Research analysts expect that Bruker will post 2.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bruker Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 23rd will be issued a $0.05 dividend. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 23rd. Bruker's payout ratio is 38.46%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus set a $40.00 price objective on shares of Bruker and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Bruker from $60.00 to $50.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Bruker from $46.00 to $43.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 4th. Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Bruker from $40.00 to $38.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group set a $60.00 target price on shares of Bruker and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Bruker currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $51.30.

Insider Buying and Selling at Bruker

In other news, Director Cynthia M. Friend sold 3,535 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.25, for a total transaction of $114,003.75. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 18,016 shares of the company's stock, valued at $581,016. This represents a 16.40% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 27.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in Bruker by 377.5% in the 2nd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 616 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 487 shares during the period. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. acquired a new stake in Bruker in the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. Huntington National Bank boosted its stake in Bruker by 750.0% in the 2nd quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 731 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 645 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP grew its holdings in shares of Bruker by 92.4% during the first quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 758 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 364 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Spire Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of Bruker in the second quarter valued at $32,000. 79.52% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Bruker Company Profile

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.