Third Point LLC Cuts Holdings in Danaher Co. (NYSE:DHR)

Third Point LLC lowered its position in shares of Danaher Co. (NYSE:DHR - Free Report) by 2.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 1,900,000 shares of the conglomerate's stock after selling 50,000 shares during the period. Danaher accounts for 5.9% of Third Point LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest holding. Third Point LLC owned about 0.26% of Danaher worth $436,145,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund raised its stake in shares of Danaher by 11.6% during the fourth quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund now owns 21,233 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $4,874,000 after purchasing an additional 2,202 shares in the last quarter. ORG Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Danaher by 1,212.8% during the 4th quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 2,770 shares of the conglomerate's stock worth $636,000 after buying an additional 2,559 shares in the last quarter. Generate Investment Management Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Danaher in the 4th quarter worth approximately $8,044,000. Compass Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Danaher by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. Compass Capital Management Inc. now owns 237,922 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $54,615,000 after acquiring an additional 10,994 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Channing Global Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Danaher by 42.8% during the fourth quarter. Channing Global Advisors LLC now owns 5,666 shares of the conglomerate's stock valued at $1,301,000 after acquiring an additional 1,698 shares during the period. 79.05% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Danaher Stock Up 1.2 %

NYSE:DHR traded up $2.44 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $199.15. 3,159,138 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,373,353. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $199.78 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $221.78. The firm has a market cap of $142.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.72, a P/E/G ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.40. Danaher Co. has a twelve month low of $171.00 and a twelve month high of $281.70.

Danaher (NYSE:DHR - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The conglomerate reported $1.88 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.62 by $0.26. The company had revenue of $5.74 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.58 billion. Danaher had a return on equity of 10.82% and a net margin of 16.33%. On average, research analysts expect that Danaher Co. will post 7.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Danaher Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 28th were paid a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 28th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.64%. This is a positive change from Danaher's previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. Danaher's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 24.85%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DHR has been the subject of a number of research reports. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $250.00 price target on shares of Danaher in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on Danaher from $231.00 to $225.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Raymond James reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Danaher in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $250.00 price target on shares of Danaher in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised shares of Danaher from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $260.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $264.40.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Christopher Paul Riley sold 15,805 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 30th. The stock was 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 approximately $3,005,442. The trade was a 51.01 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 11.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate 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.