Thermo Fisher Scientific (NYSE:TMO) Hits New 1-Year High – Should You Buy?

Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (NYSE:TMO) reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday. The stock traded as high as $727.56 and last traded at $723.2760, with a volume of 128,674 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $718.20.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently issued reports on TMO. TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific from $760.00 to $810.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. DZ Bank downgraded shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, October 23rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific from $720.00 to $750.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 22nd. Evercore decreased their price target on Thermo Fisher Scientific from $720.00 to $615.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 28th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $630.00 price target (up from $585.00) on shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have issued a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $683.64.

Thermo Fisher Scientific Trading Up 0.7%

The company has a market capitalization of $267.87 billion, a PE ratio of 38.01, a PEG ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a current ratio of 1.81, a quick ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $665.03 and a 200-day simple moving average of $555.61.

Thermo Fisher Scientific (NYSE:TMO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 21st. The medical research company reported $6.68 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.40 by $0.28. The business had revenue of $12.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.95 billion. Thermo Fisher Scientific had a return on equity of 17.33% and a net margin of 14.94%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $5.79 EPS. Analysts predict that Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. will post 25.27 EPS for the current year.

Thermo Fisher Scientific Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 15th will be given a dividend of $0.47 per share. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 15th. Thermo Fisher Scientific’s payout ratio is presently 9.92%.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Lisa P. Britt sold 2,831 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $706.45, for a total value of $1,999,959.95. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 11,560 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,166,562. This represents a 19.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Marc N. Casper sold 275 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $627.05, for a total transaction of $172,438.75. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 123,925 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $77,707,171.25. This represents a 0.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 24,546 shares of company stock valued at $15,479,192 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Thermo Fisher Scientific

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in Thermo Fisher Scientific in the second quarter worth about $15,501,867,000. Corient Private Wealth LP purchased a new position in Thermo Fisher Scientific during the 2nd quarter valued at $382,547,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in Thermo Fisher Scientific in the second quarter worth about $1,974,561,000. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new position in shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,952,930,000. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its holdings in Thermo Fisher Scientific by 0.9% in the second quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 2,472,524 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,239,625,000 after purchasing an additional 22,827 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.23% of the company’s stock.

Thermo Fisher Scientific Company Profile

Thermo Fisher Scientific develops and supplies products and services used in scientific research, clinical diagnostics, and pharmaceutical and biotechnology manufacturing. Its offerings include laboratory instruments, reagents and consumables, analytical equipment, diagnostic tests, and services that support drug development and clinical research. The company operates through businesses focused on life sciences, analytical instruments, specialty diagnostics, and laboratory products and biopharma services.