Danaher Corporation $DHR Stake Lifted by Vanderbilt University

Vanderbilt University raised its stake in Danaher Corporation (NYSE:DHR) by 9.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 46,005 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,903 shares during the quarter. Danaher makes up 1.8% of Vanderbilt University’s holdings, making the stock its 7th biggest position. Vanderbilt University’s holdings in Danaher were worth $10,531,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. JPL Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Danaher in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. WFA of San Diego LLC bought a new stake in shares of Danaher in the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. ANTIPODES PARTNERS Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Danaher in the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. TruNorth Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Danaher in the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Tripletail Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Danaher in the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. 79.05% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DHR has been the topic of several research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Danaher in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Danaher from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, December 15th. Evercore decreased their target price on shares of Danaher from $254.00 to $225.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Guggenheim upped their target price on shares of Danaher from $250.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 2nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on shares of Danaher from $270.00 to $265.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Seventeen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $253.79.

Insider Activity at Danaher

In other news, EVP Gregory M. Milosevich sold 1,320 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 represents a 20.56% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 11.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Danaher Stock Performance

Danaher stock opened at $191.03 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $202.70 and its 200 day simple moving average is $214.59. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $135.19 billion, a PE ratio of 37.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 0.95. Danaher Corporation has a 1-year low of $171.00 and a 1-year high of $242.80.

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

Danaher Increases Dividend

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

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.