Consulta Ltd Lowers Holdings in Danaher Corporation $DHR

Consulta Ltd lowered its position in Danaher Corporation (NYSE:DHR) by 45.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 600,000 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 500,000 shares during the quarter. Danaher accounts for about 6.7% of Consulta Ltd’s holdings, making the stock its 9th largest position. Consulta Ltd owned 0.08% of Danaher worth $137,352,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in Danaher in the fourth quarter worth $2,177,106,000. Viking Global Investors LP increased its holdings in Danaher by 543.9% in the 2nd quarter. Viking Global Investors LP now owns 2,907,515 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $574,351,000 after buying an additional 2,455,994 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its stake in shares of Danaher by 104.7% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 4,333,056 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $991,923,000 after buying an additional 2,216,789 shares in the last quarter. Generation Investment Management LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Danaher by 34.0% during the 3rd quarter. Generation Investment Management LLP now owns 6,654,666 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $1,319,354,000 after acquiring an additional 1,689,020 shares during the period. Finally, Capital International Investors boosted its position in shares of Danaher by 8.9% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 18,246,008 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $4,177,386,000 after acquiring an additional 1,487,768 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.05% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

DHR has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Danaher from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, April 25th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Danaher from $270.00 to $255.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Argus lowered their price objective on Danaher from $265.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Danaher from $275.00 to $245.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, HSBC decreased their price target on Danaher from $270.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have assigned a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Danaher has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $233.61.

Danaher Price Performance

NYSE:DHR opened at $177.85 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.52, a current ratio of 1.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The firm has a market cap of $125.88 billion, a PE ratio of 34.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.81. Danaher Corporation has a 12 month low of $160.93 and a 12 month high of $242.80. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $180.26 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $203.59.

Danaher (NYSE:DHR) last posted its earnings results on Monday, April 20th. The conglomerate reported $2.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $5.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6 billion. Danaher had a net margin of 14.89% and a return on equity of 10.91%. Danaher’s quarterly revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.88 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Danaher Corporation will post 8.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Danaher Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 31st. Shareholders 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. Danaher’s payout ratio is presently 30.95%.

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.