Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (NYSE:TMO) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (NYSE:TMO) have received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-two research firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, nineteen have given a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $632.50.

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Thermo Fisher Scientific from $656.00 to $670.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 2nd. DZ Bank initiated coverage on shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific in a research note on Friday. They set a “buy” rating and a $610.00 price objective on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific from $583.00 to $700.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific in a research report on Tuesday, December 9th. They set a “buy” rating and a $685.00 price target on the stock. Finally, HSBC upgraded Thermo Fisher Scientific from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 1st.

Thermo Fisher Scientific Stock Down 3.1%

Shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific stock opened at $473.83 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 1.89 and a quick ratio of 1.53. Thermo Fisher Scientific has a 1-year low of $385.46 and a 1-year high of $643.99. The business has a 50-day moving average of $530.10 and a 200-day moving average of $547.35. The company has a market capitalization of $176.02 billion, a PE ratio of 26.71, a P/E/G ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.96.

Thermo Fisher Scientific (NYSE:TMO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The medical research company reported $6.57 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.45 by $0.12. Thermo Fisher Scientific had a return on equity of 16.92% and a net margin of 15.05%.The firm had revenue of $12.22 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.95 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $6.10 earnings per share. Thermo Fisher Scientific’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Thermo Fisher Scientific will post 23.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Thermo Fisher Scientific Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be issued a $0.47 dividend. This is a positive change from Thermo Fisher Scientific’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Thermo Fisher Scientific’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 10.60%.

Insider Activity at Thermo Fisher Scientific

In other Thermo Fisher Scientific news, CEO Marc N. Casper sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $512.40, for a total transaction of $2,562,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 123,925 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $63,499,170. This represents a 3.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Gianluca Pettiti sold 400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $541.20, for a total transaction of $216,480.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 20,752 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,230,982.40. The trade was a 1.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Thermo Fisher Scientific

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. J. Stern & Co. LLP raised its position in shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific by 58,006.4% during the 4th quarter. J. Stern & Co. LLP now owns 31,509,332 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $18,258,082,000 after purchasing an additional 31,455,105 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in Thermo Fisher Scientific during the 2nd quarter worth $2,264,615,000. Auto Owners Insurance Co increased its position in Thermo Fisher Scientific by 57,845.0% in the fourth quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 2,427,896 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,406,844,000 after buying an additional 2,423,706 shares during the period. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Thermo Fisher Scientific by 2,183.2% in the fourth quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,328,845 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $770,000,000 after buying an additional 1,270,643 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific by 88.9% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,699,460 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,309,292,000 after acquiring an additional 1,270,191 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 89.23% of the company’s stock.

About Thermo Fisher Scientific

Thermo Fisher Scientific (NYSE: TMO) is a global provider of scientific instrumentation, reagents and consumables, software, and services that support research, clinical, and industrial laboratories. The company supplies analytical instruments and laboratory equipment, life sciences reagents and kits, specialty diagnostics, and a broad range of consumables used by researchers, clinicians, and manufacturers. Its offerings also include laboratory information management and data-analysis software, as well as service solutions such as instrument maintenance, validation, and logistics that help customers run complex workflows efficiently.

Thermo Fisher operates through multiple business areas that broadly cover life sciences solutions, analytical instruments, specialty diagnostics, and laboratory products and biopharma services, including contract development and manufacturing for pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies.