Bruker (NASDAQ:BRKR) Stock Price Down 5.3% – Here’s What Happened

Bruker Co. (NASDAQ:BRKR)’s stock price traded down 5.3% on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $57.11 and last traded at $58.02. 805,182 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 34% from the average session volume of 1,224,903 shares. The stock had previously closed at $61.26.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Bruker from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $60.00 target price for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Citigroup lowered their target price on Bruker from $80.00 to $75.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Bank of America boosted their price target on Bruker from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Wolfe Research lowered Bruker from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Finally, TD Cowen reduced their price objective on shares of Bruker from $72.00 to $70.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $74.45.

Bruker Stock Down 3.6 %

The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24. The company has a market capitalization of $8.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 1.17. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $57.81 and a 200-day moving average price of $61.70.

Bruker (NASDAQ:BRKR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 5th. The medical research company reported $0.60 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.61 by ($0.01). Bruker had a net margin of 9.41% and a return on equity of 21.52%. The firm had revenue of $864.40 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $866.46 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.74 earnings per share. Bruker’s quarterly revenue was up 16.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Bruker Co. will post 2.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bruker Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were paid a dividend of $0.05 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.35%. Bruker’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 9.62%.

Insider Transactions at Bruker

In related news, CEO Frank H. Laukien acquired 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 18th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $50.14 per share, with a total value of $5,014,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 38,439,563 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,927,359,688.82. This trade represents a 0.26 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 28.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Bruker

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of BRKR. FMR LLC raised its holdings in shares of Bruker by 21.4% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 14,306,122 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $987,981,000 after acquiring an additional 2,521,904 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Bruker by 9.6% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,627,300 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $250,501,000 after buying an additional 318,808 shares during the last quarter. RTW Investments LP grew its stake in shares of Bruker by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. RTW Investments LP now owns 3,481,119 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $240,406,000 after buying an additional 37,024 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Bruker by 10.8% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,993,468 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $137,702,000 after buying an additional 193,580 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP raised its position in Bruker by 127.8% during the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,389,537 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $88,666,000 after acquiring an additional 779,549 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.52% of the company’s stock.

Bruker Company Profile

Bruker Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, develops, manufactures, and distributes scientific instruments, and analytical and diagnostic solutions in the United States, Europe, the Asia Pacific, and internationally. The company operates through four segments: Bruker Scientific Instruments (BSI) BioSpin, BSI CALID, BSI Nano, and Bruker Energy & Supercon Technologies.