Jefferies Financial Group Has Lowered Expectations for Danaher (NYSE:DHR) Stock Price

Danaher (NYSE:DHR) had its price target cut by analysts at Jefferies Financial Group from $265.00 to $240.00 in a note issued to investors on Wednesday,MarketScreener reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the conglomerate’s stock. Jefferies Financial Group’s target price suggests a potential upside of 24.27% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other research firms have also recently issued reports on DHR. KeyCorp reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Danaher in a report on Thursday, January 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Danaher from $270.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Danaher in a report on Friday, March 27th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Danaher in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Danaher in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Eighteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $251.35.

Danaher Price Performance

Danaher stock opened at $193.12 on Wednesday. Danaher has a 52 week low of $175.51 and a 52 week high of $242.80. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $201.61 and a 200 day simple moving average of $214.31. The company has a quick ratio of 1.51, a current ratio of 1.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The stock has a market cap of $136.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.32, a PEG ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 0.95.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Gregory M. Milosevich sold 1,320 shares of the 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 5,099 shares in the company, valued at $1,060,642.99. This represents a 20.56% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 11.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Danaher

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Osbon Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Danaher during the 4th quarter valued at about $49,000. World Investment Advisors boosted its holdings in Danaher by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 13,931 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $3,189,000 after acquiring an additional 211 shares during the period. Winthrop Partners WNY LLC purchased a new stake in Danaher during the 4th quarter valued at about $923,000. Union Savings Bank purchased a new stake in Danaher during the 4th quarter valued at about $591,000. Finally, Storen Legacy Partners LLC bought a new position in Danaher during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $3,359,000. 79.05% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Danaher Company 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.