Danaher Corporation $DHR Stock Position Trimmed by Weitz Investment Management Inc.

Weitz Investment Management Inc. cut its position in Danaher Corporation (NYSE:DHR) by 2.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 513,950 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 13,000 shares during the period. Danaher makes up 7.0% of Weitz Investment Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 2nd largest position. Weitz Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Danaher were worth $117,653,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Andra AP fonden acquired a new stake in shares of Danaher during the fourth quarter worth about $2,343,000. Hibernia Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in Danaher in the 4th quarter worth approximately $360,000. Colonial Trust Co SC raised its position in Danaher by 19.3% during the 4th quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 1,334 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $305,000 after buying an additional 216 shares during the last quarter. Riverwater Partners LLC lifted its stake in Danaher by 8.6% during the 4th quarter. Riverwater Partners LLC now owns 5,600 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,282,000 after acquiring an additional 444 shares during the period. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Danaher by 33.6% in the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 22,658 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $5,187,000 after acquiring an additional 5,693 shares during the last quarter. 79.05% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Wolfe Research lowered shares of Danaher from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Monday, June 1st. HSBC lowered their price target on shares of Danaher from $270.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $245.00 price objective on shares of Danaher in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. TD Cowen decreased their price objective on Danaher from $245.00 to $240.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Evercore upped their target price on Danaher from $225.00 to $232.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have issued a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $233.61.

Danaher Trading Down 1.6%

Shares of Danaher stock opened at $180.65 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $181.15 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $204.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 1.52 and a current ratio of 1.87. Danaher Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $160.93 and a fifty-two week high of $242.80. The company has a market cap of $127.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.81.

Danaher (NYSE:DHR) last posted its earnings results on Monday, April 20th. The conglomerate reported $2.06 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.12. Danaher had a return on equity of 10.91% and a net margin of 14.89%.The firm had revenue of $5.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.88 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Danaher Corporation will post 8.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Danaher Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 26th will be given a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 26th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Danaher’s payout ratio is 30.95%.

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.