Mettler-Toledo International Inc. (NYSE:MTD) Receives Average Rating of “Reduce” from Brokerages

Shares of Mettler-Toledo International Inc. (NYSE:MTD) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Reduce” from the eight ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $1,338.75.

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on Mettler-Toledo International from $1,375.00 to $1,310.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Mettler-Toledo International from $1,300.00 to $1,400.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Mettler-Toledo International from $1,400.00 to $1,350.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on shares of Mettler-Toledo International from $1,550.00 to $1,450.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of Mettler-Toledo International from $1,375.00 to $1,450.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Elisha W. Finney sold 76 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,311.75, for a total transaction of $99,693.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 240 shares in the company, valued at $314,820. This trade represents a 24.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 1.94% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Mettler-Toledo International

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of MTD. Family Firm Inc. bought a new position in Mettler-Toledo International during the second quarter valued at about $25,000. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in Mettler-Toledo International by 242.9% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 24 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 17 shares during the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of Mettler-Toledo International during the 3rd quarter valued at about $37,000. Rothschild Investment LLC acquired a new position in shares of Mettler-Toledo International in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $42,000. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new stake in shares of Mettler-Toledo International in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $42,000. 95.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Mettler-Toledo International Stock Performance

Shares of Mettler-Toledo International stock opened at $1,260.84 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $26.60 billion, a PE ratio of 33.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.13 and a beta of 1.13. Mettler-Toledo International has a 1 year low of $1,068.33 and a 1 year high of $1,546.93. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $1,342.27 and its 200-day simple moving average is $1,390.47.

Mettler-Toledo International (NYSE:MTD) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The medical instruments supplier reported $10.21 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $10.00 by $0.21. Mettler-Toledo International had a net margin of 21.15% and a negative return on equity of 531.78%. The company had revenue of $954.54 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $941.93 million. On average, equities analysts predict that Mettler-Toledo International will post 40.42 earnings per share for the current year.

About Mettler-Toledo International

Mettler-Toledo International Inc manufactures and supplies precision instruments and services in the Americas, Europe, Asia, and internationally. It operates through five segments: U.S. Operations, Swiss Operations, Western European Operations, Chinese Operations, and Other. The company’s laboratory instruments include laboratory balances, liquid pipetting solutions, automated laboratory reactors, real-time analytics, titrators, pH meters, process analytics sensors and analyzer technologies, physical value analyzers, density and refractometry, thermal analysis systems, and other analytical instruments; and LabX, a laboratory software platform to manage and analyze data generated from its instruments.