5,609 Shares in Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. $TMO Acquired by Northstar Advisory Group LLC

Northstar Advisory Group LLC bought a new stake in Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (NYSE:TMO) during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm bought 5,609 shares of the medical research company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,250,000. Thermo Fisher Scientific accounts for 1.2% of Northstar Advisory Group LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest holding.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Lombard Odier Asset Management Switzerland SA grew its stake in shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific by 8.4% in the second quarter. Lombard Odier Asset Management Switzerland SA now owns 14,490 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $5,875,000 after buying an additional 1,128 shares in the last quarter. Cornerstone Investment Partners LLC purchased a new position in Thermo Fisher Scientific during the 3rd quarter valued at about $41,393,000. Weaver Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Thermo Fisher Scientific in the 3rd quarter valued at about $506,000. VELA Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Thermo Fisher Scientific by 65.5% during the third quarter. VELA Investment Management LLC now owns 9,305 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $4,513,000 after purchasing an additional 3,683 shares during the period. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp lifted its position in shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific by 29.4% during the third quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 276,545 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $134,130,000 after purchasing an additional 62,790 shares in the last quarter. 89.23% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Thermo Fisher Scientific Trading Up 1.5%

Shares of NYSE:TMO opened at $480.47 on Tuesday. Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. has a 52 week low of $385.46 and a 52 week high of $643.99. The company’s 50 day moving average is $527.32 and its two-hundred day moving average is $548.21. The company has a market cap of $178.48 billion, a PE ratio of 27.08, a P/E/G ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a current ratio of 1.89, a quick ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67.

Thermo Fisher Scientific (NYSE:TMO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The medical research company reported $6.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.45 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $12.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.95 billion. Thermo Fisher Scientific had a net margin of 15.05% and a return on equity of 16.92%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $6.10 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. will post 23.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Thermo Fisher Scientific Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be issued a $0.47 dividend. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. This is an increase from Thermo Fisher Scientific’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. Thermo Fisher Scientific’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 10.60%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Gianluca Pettiti sold 400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $541.20, for a total transaction of $216,480.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 20,752 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,230,982.40. This trade represents a 1.89% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Marc N. Casper sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $512.40, for a total value of $2,562,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 123,925 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $63,499,170. This trade represents a 3.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on TMO. HSBC raised shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 1st. KeyCorp upgraded shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $750.00 price target for the company in a research note on Sunday, December 7th. Barclays upped their price objective on Thermo Fisher Scientific from $625.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Thermo Fisher Scientific from $583.00 to $700.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 9th. Finally, DZ Bank initiated coverage on Thermo Fisher Scientific in a research note on Friday. They set a “buy” rating and a $610.00 target price for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Thermo Fisher Scientific has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $632.50.

Thermo Fisher Scientific Profile

Thermo Fisher Scientific (NYSE: TMO) is a global provider of scientific instrumentation, reagents and consumables, software, and services that support research, clinical, and industrial laboratories. The company supplies analytical instruments and laboratory equipment, life sciences reagents and kits, specialty diagnostics, and a broad range of consumables used by researchers, clinicians, and manufacturers. Its offerings also include laboratory information management and data-analysis software, as well as service solutions such as instrument maintenance, validation, and logistics that help customers run complex workflows efficiently.

Thermo Fisher operates through multiple business areas that broadly cover life sciences solutions, analytical instruments, specialty diagnostics, and laboratory products and biopharma services, including contract development and manufacturing for pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies.