Thermo Fisher Scientific (NYSE:TMO) Rating Increased to Buy at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific (NYSE:TMO) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report released on Saturday.

A number of other analysts have also commented on the company. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific in a report on Friday, January 9th. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $615.00 target price on shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $683.00 price target on Thermo Fisher Scientific in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Robert W. Baird set a $653.00 price objective on shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific in a report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, HSBC upgraded shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $633.68.

Thermo Fisher Scientific Stock Performance

Shares of TMO opened at $520.80 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $195.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.36, a PEG ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 0.93. Thermo Fisher Scientific has a twelve month low of $385.46 and a twelve month high of $643.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 1.53 and a current ratio of 1.89. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $574.24 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $547.94.

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

Thermo Fisher Scientific Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be given a $0.47 dividend. This is a boost from Thermo Fisher Scientific’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 13th. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Thermo Fisher Scientific’s payout ratio is 9.70%.

Thermo Fisher Scientific declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Thursday, November 6th that permits the company to buyback $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the medical research company to purchase up to 2.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Frederick M. Lowery sold 6,912 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $581.94, for a total transaction of $4,022,369.28. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 14,367 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,360,731.98. The trade was a 32.48% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, COO Michel Lagarde sold 22,046 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $563.56, for a total value of $12,424,243.76. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 84,117 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $47,404,976.52. This represents a 20.77% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 98,271 shares of company stock valued at $56,920,935. 0.33% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Thermo Fisher Scientific

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of TMO. High Note Wealth LLC lifted its position in Thermo Fisher Scientific by 170.6% during the fourth quarter. High Note Wealth LLC now owns 46 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 29 shares during the last quarter. Swiss RE Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific during the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Beacon Financial Strategies CORP acquired a new stake in Thermo Fisher Scientific during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Olistico Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Thermo Fisher Scientific in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Birchwood Financial Partners Inc. bought a new position in Thermo Fisher Scientific during the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.23% of the company’s stock.

About Thermo Fisher Scientific

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.