Danaher (NYSE:DHR) Price Target Raised to $270.00 at Leerink Partners

Danaher (NYSE:DHR) had its price objective increased by Leerink Partners from $260.00 to $270.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday,MarketScreener reports. The brokerage currently has an outperform rating on the conglomerate’s stock.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on DHR. Rothschild Redb lowered Danaher from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of Danaher in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on Danaher in a research report on Monday, December 1st. They set an “overweight” rating and a $270.00 price objective for the company. Redburn Partners set a $220.00 target price on Danaher in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Danaher from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, November 22nd. Twenty-one research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $252.83.

Danaher Price Performance

DHR stock opened at $236.05 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 1.52 and a quick ratio of 1.10. Danaher has a 1 year low of $171.00 and a 1 year high of $258.23. The company has a market cap of $166.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 48.67, a PEG ratio of 4.27 and a beta of 0.89. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $228.31 and a 200 day moving average of $211.85.

Danaher (NYSE:DHR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 20th. The conglomerate reported $1.89 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.72 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $6.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6 billion. Danaher had a return on equity of 10.92% and a net margin of 14.44%.Danaher’s revenue was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.71 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Danaher will post 7.63 EPS for the current year.

Danaher Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 26th will be paid a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 26th. Danaher’s payout ratio is currently 26.39%.

Insider Transactions at Danaher

In other Danaher news, SVP Brian W. Ellis sold 21,776 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $219.23, for a total value of $4,773,952.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 14,553 shares in the company, valued at $3,190,454.19. This trade represents a 59.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Teri List sold 3,298 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $226.50, for a total transaction of $746,997.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 20,762 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,702,593. This represents a 13.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 30,248 shares of company stock valued at $6,609,663. 11.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Danaher

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of DHR. Perigon Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Danaher by 12.6% during the 4th quarter. Perigon Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,439 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $1,703,000 after acquiring an additional 834 shares during the last quarter. Aberdeen Group plc lifted its position in shares of Danaher by 12.0% in the fourth quarter. Aberdeen Group plc now owns 1,292,583 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $295,898,000 after purchasing an additional 138,852 shares in the last quarter. FNY Investment Advisers LLC boosted its holdings in Danaher by 16,106.9% during the fourth quarter. FNY Investment Advisers LLC now owns 4,700 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $1,075,000 after purchasing an additional 4,671 shares during the last quarter. Worth Financial Advisory Group LLC increased its stake in Danaher by 79.9% in the 4th quarter. Worth Financial Advisory Group LLC now owns 1,977 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $453,000 after buying an additional 878 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dorato Capital Management acquired a new stake in Danaher in the 4th quarter valued at $496,000. 79.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Danaher Company Profile

Danaher Corporation (NYSE: DHR) is a global science and technology company that designs, manufactures and markets products and services for the life sciences, diagnostics, and environmental and applied markets. The company organizes its operations into business segments focused on Life Sciences, Diagnostics, and Environmental & Applied Solutions, supplying instruments, reagents, software and related services that support research, clinical testing, biopharmaceutical development, and industrial and environmental monitoring.

Products and services in Danaher’s portfolio include analytical and diagnostic instruments, laboratory consumables and reagents, digital and software solutions for workflow and data management, field and industrial monitoring equipment, and service and maintenance programs.