Moody National Bank Trust Division Boosts Stake in Danaher Co. (NYSE:DHR)

Moody National Bank Trust Division lifted its holdings in Danaher Co. (NYSE:DHR – Get Rating) by 1.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 13,565 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after buying an additional 224 shares during the period. Moody National Bank Trust Division’s holdings in Danaher were worth $3,600,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Fairfield Bush & CO. boosted its stake in Danaher by 10.9% in the first quarter. Fairfield Bush & CO. now owns 4,840 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,420,000 after acquiring an additional 475 shares during the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. increased its position in Danaher by 19.3% in the first quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 2,468 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $724,000 after buying an additional 400 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd increased its position in Danaher by 76.8% in the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 495 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $145,000 after buying an additional 215 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Danaher by 14.1% during the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 31,530 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $9,248,000 after buying an additional 3,897 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bridgewater Associates LP grew its stake in shares of Danaher by 135.9% during the 1st quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP now owns 35,270 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $10,346,000 after acquiring an additional 20,320 shares during the period. 77.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Danaher Price Performance

DHR traded down $6.38 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $242.96. The stock had a trading volume of 3,467,152 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,675,186. Danaher Co. has a 1 year low of $233.71 and a 1 year high of $303.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 1.52 and a current ratio of 1.89. The business has a fifty day moving average of $258.48 and a 200 day moving average of $262.40. The company has a market cap of $177.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 0.80.

Danaher (NYSE:DHR – Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 24th. The conglomerate reported $2.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.46 by $0.41. The company had revenue of $8.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.90 billion. Danaher had a net margin of 22.91% and a return on equity of 17.97%. The firm’s revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.69 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Danaher Co. will post 10.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Danaher Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 31st will be issued a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 30th. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.44%. This is an increase from Danaher’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Danaher’s payout ratio is currently 10.36%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Raymond C. Stevens sold 8,410 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $264.27, for a total transaction of $2,222,510.70. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 8,394 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,218,282.38. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 11.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DHR has been the topic of a number of research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on Danaher in a research note on Tuesday, December 13th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $310.00 price objective on the stock. Credit Suisse Group cut shares of Danaher from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $315.00 to $300.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 5th. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on shares of Danaher from $321.00 to $309.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 25th. Cowen cut their price target on Danaher from $340.00 to $320.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 25th. Finally, StockNews.com assumed coverage on Danaher in a research note on Thursday. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $310.29.

Danaher Company Profile

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Danaher Corp. engages in the design, manufacture, and marketing of professional, medical, industrial, and commercial products and services. It operates through the following segments: Biotechnology, Life Sciences, Diagnostics, and Environmental and Applied Solutions. The Biotechnology segment includes the bioprocessing and discovery and medical businesses and offers a range of tools, consumables, and services.