Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG Increases Holdings in Danaher Corporation $DHR

Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG increased its position in Danaher Corporation (NYSE:DHR) by 11.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 292,180 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after purchasing an additional 30,909 shares during the quarter. Danaher makes up about 1.2% of Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG’s portfolio, making the stock its 23rd biggest position. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG’s holdings in Danaher were worth $57,928,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Danaher by 389.1% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 313 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $62,000 after buying an additional 249 shares during the period. Financial Consulate Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Danaher during the third quarter valued at $744,000. Ninety One UK Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Danaher by 1.1% in the third quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 45,111 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $8,944,000 after acquiring an additional 492 shares in the last quarter. XML Financial LLC lifted its stake in Danaher by 24.7% in the third quarter. XML Financial LLC now owns 8,586 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $1,702,000 after acquiring an additional 1,702 shares during the period. Finally, Vanderbilt University bought a new position in Danaher during the 3rd quarter worth about $8,347,000. 79.05% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Teri List sold 3,298 shares of Danaher stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $226.50, for a total transaction of $746,997.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 20,762 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,702,593. The trade was a 13.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Brian W. Ellis sold 21,776 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $219.23, for a total value of $4,773,952.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 14,553 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,190,454.19. The trade was a 59.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 30,248 shares of company stock valued at $6,609,663. Insiders own 11.10% of the company’s stock.

Danaher Stock Down 0.7%

Shares of DHR stock opened at $228.99 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $223.65 and its 200 day moving average price is $208.90. Danaher Corporation has a 1-year low of $171.00 and a 1-year high of $258.23. The company has a market cap of $161.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.43 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 1.52 and a quick ratio of 1.10.

Danaher (NYSE:DHR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 20th. The conglomerate reported $1.89 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.72 by $0.17. Danaher had a return on equity of 10.92% and a net margin of 14.44%.The business had revenue of $6.05 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.71 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Danaher Corporation will post 7.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Danaher Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 26th will be paid a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 26th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. Danaher’s dividend payout ratio is presently 26.39%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on DHR shares. HSBC upped their price target on shares of Danaher from $255.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Danaher from $260.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Robert W. Baird set a $247.00 target price on Danaher in a research report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Barclays lifted their price target on Danaher from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Danaher from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 22nd. Twenty-one research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Danaher has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $248.25.

About Danaher

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.