Bruker (NASDAQ:BRKR) Price Target Cut to $50.00 by Analysts at Bank of America

Bruker (NASDAQ:BRKR) had its price objective reduced by Bank of America from $61.00 to $50.00 in a research report released on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the medical research company’s stock.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price objective on shares of Bruker from $50.00 to $45.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Barclays cut their price target on Bruker from $50.00 to $46.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on Bruker from $57.00 to $45.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Citigroup downgraded Bruker from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $50.00 to $40.00 in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Bruker from $75.00 to $60.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $52.89.

Bruker Trading Up 3.1%

BRKR opened at $42.18 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. Bruker has a 52 week low of $34.10 and a 52 week high of $72.94. The stock has a market cap of $6.39 billion, a PE ratio of 81.12, a PEG ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 1.16. The business has a 50 day moving average of $38.41 and a 200-day moving average of $46.71.

Bruker (NASDAQ:BRKR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The medical research company reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.46 by $0.01. Bruker had a return on equity of 19.47% and a net margin of 2.31%. The business had revenue of $801.40 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $763.83 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.53 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Bruker will post 2.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bruker Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 27th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be paid a $0.05 dividend. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. Bruker’s dividend payout ratio is currently 38.46%.

Insider Activity at Bruker

In related news, CEO Frank H. Laukien bought 2,608 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 6th. The shares were bought at an average price of $38.36 per share, for a total transaction of $100,042.88. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 38,462,171 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,475,408,879.56. This trade represents a 0.01% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 27.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bruker

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its position in Bruker by 54.2% during the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,109 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 390 shares during the period. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Bruker by 29.0% during the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 3,514 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $206,000 after acquiring an additional 791 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in shares of Bruker by 7.6% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 988,863 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $57,967,000 after acquiring an additional 69,806 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. increased its stake in shares of Bruker by 45.8% in the 1st quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,325 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $55,000 after purchasing an additional 416 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company MN increased its stake in shares of Bruker by 95.1% in the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 190,855 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $11,188,000 after purchasing an additional 93,048 shares in the last quarter. 79.52% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Bruker Company Profile

Bruker Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, develops, manufactures, and distributes scientific instruments, and analytical and diagnostic solutions in the United States, Europe, the Asia Pacific, and internationally. The company operates through four segments: Bruker Scientific Instruments (BSI) BioSpin, BSI CALID, BSI Nano, and Bruker Energy & Supercon Technologies.