Blue Whale Capital LLP Reduces Position in Danaher Corporation $DHR

Blue Whale Capital LLP decreased its holdings in Danaher Corporation (NYSE:DHR) by 15.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 337,831 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 59,563 shares during the quarter. Danaher makes up 3.7% of Blue Whale Capital LLP’s portfolio, making the stock its 11th biggest position. Blue Whale Capital LLP’s holdings in Danaher were worth $66,978,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Sivia Capital Partners LLC raised its holdings in Danaher by 6.3% in the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,009 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $397,000 after acquiring an additional 119 shares in the last quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. increased its position in shares of Danaher by 6.3% in the 2nd quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. now owns 4,541 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $897,000 after purchasing an additional 270 shares during the last quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc increased its position in shares of Danaher by 16.0% in the 2nd quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc now owns 4,972 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $983,000 after purchasing an additional 684 shares during the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Danaher by 2.2% in the 2nd quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 3,297 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $651,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Danaher by 3.2% in the 2nd quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 51,051 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $10,083,000 after purchasing an additional 1,596 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.05% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Danaher

In other Danaher news, EVP Gregory M. Milosevich sold 1,320 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $208.01, for a total transaction of $274,573.20. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 5,099 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,060,642.99. The trade was a 20.56% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 11.20% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on DHR shares. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Danaher in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. HSBC increased their target price on Danaher from $255.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 1st. Argus set a $265.00 target price on Danaher in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. KeyCorp reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Danaher in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Danaher from $270.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Twenty equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Danaher currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $253.86.

Danaher Trading Down 1.8%

Shares of DHR stock opened at $195.32 on Wednesday. Danaher Corporation has a 1 year low of $171.00 and a 1 year high of $242.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $138.12 billion, a PE ratio of 38.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 0.93. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $221.18 and a two-hundred day moving average of $215.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.51 and a current ratio of 1.87.

Danaher (NYSE:DHR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 27th. The conglomerate reported $2.23 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.14 by $0.09. Danaher had a return on equity of 10.81% and a net margin of 14.71%.The company had revenue of $6.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.79 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.14 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Danaher Corporation will post 7.63 EPS for the current year.

Danaher Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 27th will be paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 27th. This is a positive change from Danaher’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. Danaher’s dividend payout ratio is 25.40%.

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.