Moody National Bank Trust Division Reduces Stock Holdings in Danaher Corporation $DHR

Moody National Bank Trust Division cut its stake in Danaher Corporation (NYSE:DHR) by 31.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 6,716 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 3,022 shares during the period. Moody National Bank Trust Division’s holdings in Danaher were worth $1,537,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of DHR. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Danaher during the second quarter worth about $1,979,503,000. Viking Global Investors LP boosted its holdings in Danaher by 543.9% in the 2nd quarter. Viking Global Investors LP now owns 2,907,515 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $574,351,000 after purchasing an additional 2,455,994 shares in the last quarter. Generation Investment Management LLP increased its position in Danaher by 34.0% during the 3rd quarter. Generation Investment Management LLP now owns 6,654,666 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $1,319,354,000 after purchasing an additional 1,689,020 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its stake in shares of Danaher by 211.7% during the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,088,089 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $414,038,000 after buying an additional 1,418,243 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its holdings in shares of Danaher by 33.9% in the 3rd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 3,519,013 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $697,680,000 after buying an additional 891,210 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.05% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Danaher news, EVP Gregory M. Milosevich sold 1,320 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $208.01, for a total value of $274,573.20. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 5,099 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,060,642.99. This trade represents a 20.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 11.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Danaher Stock Up 0.0%

Shares of NYSE DHR opened at $190.04 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.51 and a current ratio of 1.87. Danaher Corporation has a 1 year low of $171.00 and a 1 year high of $242.80. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $212.44 and its 200-day simple moving average is $214.90. The firm has a market cap of $134.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.71, a PEG ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.93.

Danaher (NYSE:DHR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 27th. The conglomerate reported $2.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.14 by $0.09. Danaher had a return on equity of 10.81% and a net margin of 14.71%.The firm had revenue of $6.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.79 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.14 EPS. Danaher’s quarterly revenue was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Danaher Corporation will post 7.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Danaher Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 24th. Investors of record on Friday, March 27th will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 27th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. This is a boost from Danaher’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. Danaher’s payout ratio is currently 25.40%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

DHR has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on Danaher from $255.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Danaher from $270.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Danaher in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Guggenheim increased their target price on Danaher from $250.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 2nd. Finally, HSBC boosted their price target on Danaher from $255.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 1st. Nineteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $253.55.

Danaher 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.