Danaher Corporation $DHR Shares Sold by Louisbourg Investments Inc.

Louisbourg Investments Inc. cut its stake in Danaher Corporation (NYSE:DHR) by 15.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 18,064 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 3,416 shares during the period. Louisbourg Investments Inc.’s holdings in Danaher were worth $4,135,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Danaher during the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. WFA of San Diego LLC acquired a new position in shares of Danaher in the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. ANTIPODES PARTNERS Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Danaher during the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. Howard Hughes Medical Institute purchased a new stake in shares of Danaher during the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. Finally, TruNorth Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Danaher during the 3rd quarter worth $28,000. 79.05% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently weighed in on DHR shares. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Danaher from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Guggenheim upped their price target on Danaher from $250.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Danaher from $270.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Robert W. Baird set a $251.00 price objective on Danaher in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Danaher in a report on Friday, March 27th. Nineteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $253.55.

Insider Activity at Danaher

In related news, EVP Gregory M. Milosevich sold 1,320 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $208.01, for a total transaction of $274,573.20. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 5,099 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,060,642.99. The trade was a 20.56% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 11.10% of the company’s stock.

Danaher Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of Danaher stock opened at $191.18 on Friday. Danaher Corporation has a twelve month low of $171.00 and a twelve month high of $242.80. The stock has a market cap of $135.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a current ratio of 1.87, a quick ratio of 1.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $205.37 and a 200 day moving average price of $214.29.

Danaher (NYSE:DHR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 27th. The conglomerate reported $2.23 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.14 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $6.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.79 billion. Danaher had a return on equity of 10.81% and a net margin of 14.71%.The firm’s revenue was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.14 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Danaher Corporation will post 7.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Danaher Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 27th will be paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. This is an increase from Danaher’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 27th. Danaher’s payout ratio is 31.75%.

About Danaher

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.