Erste Asset Management GmbH Sells 65,111 Shares of Danaher Corporation $DHR

Erste Asset Management GmbH reduced its position in shares of Danaher Corporation (NYSE:DHR) by 79.4% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 16,913 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 65,111 shares during the quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH’s holdings in Danaher were worth $3,186,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. WFA of San Diego LLC purchased a new position in shares of Danaher during the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. Howard Hughes Medical Institute purchased a new position in shares of Danaher in the 2nd quarter worth about $27,000. ANTIPODES PARTNERS Ltd bought a new position in shares of Danaher during the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. TruNorth Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Danaher in the third quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Tripletail Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Danaher in the 3rd quarter worth $31,000. Institutional investors own 79.05% of the company’s stock.

Danaher Stock Performance

DHR opened at $210.28 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.87 and a quick ratio of 1.51. Danaher Corporation has a 1 year low of $171.00 and a 1 year high of $242.80. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $225.33 and a 200 day moving average price of $216.23. The stock has a market cap of $148.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.72, a P/E/G ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.91.

Danaher (NYSE:DHR) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 27th. The conglomerate reported $2.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.14 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $6.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.79 billion. Danaher had a net margin of 14.71% and a return on equity of 10.81%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.14 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Danaher Corporation will post 7.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Danaher Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 24th. Investors of record on Friday, March 27th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. This is a positive change from Danaher’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 27th. Danaher’s dividend payout ratio is 25.40%.

Insider Transactions at Danaher

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 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 owned 5,099 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,060,642.99. This trade represents a 20.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 11.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on DHR. Robert W. Baird set a $251.00 target price on Danaher in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Danaher in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Danaher from $270.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on shares of Danaher from $270.00 to $265.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Danaher from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, November 22nd. Twenty research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $253.86.

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.