Danaher Co. (NYSE:DHR) experienced a significant growth in short interest during the month of August. The total short interest as of August 31st was 6,330,000 shares, an increase of 29.2% from the August 15th total of 4,900,000 shares. Currently, 0.9% of the company’s shares are sold short. The short-interest ratio is currently 2.3 days based on an average daily volume of 2,740,000 shares.
Danaher Trading Up 0.7%
On Friday, NYSE DHR traded up $1.77, reaching $255.25. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 5,696,631 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,877,042. Danaher has a 1-year low of $221.22 and a 1-year high of $283.63. The company’s 50-day moving average is $252.96 and its 200-day moving average is $245.06. The firm has a market cap of $188.46 billion, a PE ratio of 29.96, a PEG ratio of 2.72, and a beta of 0.80.
Danaher Reports Quarterly Earnings Results
On July 25th, Danaher announced its quarterly earnings results. The conglomerate reported earnings per share (EPS) of $2.05 for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.01. Danaher had a net margin of 20.95% and a return on equity of 15.03%. The firm had revenue of $7.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.12 billion. The company’s revenue was down 7.7% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Danaher will post 8.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Danaher Announces Dividend
The company recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on October 27th. Stockholders of record on October 12th will receive a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents an annualized dividend of $1.08 and a dividend yield of 0.42%. The ex-dividend date is October 11th. Danaher’s dividend payout ratio is currently 12.68%.
Insider Sales at Danaher
SVP Daniel Raskas sold 11,213 shares of the company’s stock on July 28th at an average price of $260.65, for a total value of $2,922,668.45. SVP Jose-Carlos Gutierrez-Ramos also sold 590 shares on August 21st at an average price of $250.54, for a total value of $147,818.60. Insiders have sold 47,922 shares of company stock worth $12,552,233 in the last ninety days.
Institutional Investors Hold Majority Stake
Larger investors have recently modified their holdings of Danaher stock. IMS Capital Management increased its position by 0.4% during the second quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its holdings by 6.7% in the same quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc., Westshore Wealth LLC, and Portside Wealth Group LLC also acquired new stakes in the company during the second quarter.
Wall Street Analysts Predict Growth
Several research analysts have issued reports on Danaher stock. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price from $250.00 to $240.00, while Royal Bank of Canada, Bank of America, and Raymond James increased their target prices to $292.00, $280.00, and $290.00 respectively. Five analysts have rated the stock as a hold, while eleven have assigned a buy rating. The average rating is “Moderate Buy” with an average target price of $289.79.
About Danaher
Danaher Corporation is a global company that designs, manufactures, and markets professional, medical, industrial, and commercial products and services. The company’s Biotechnology segment specializes in bioprocess technologies, consumables, and services; lab filtration, separation, and purification; lab-scale protein purification and analytical tools; reagents, membranes, and services; and healthcare filtration solutions.
Sources:
– Source 1: MarketBeat
– Source 2: Wall Street Journal