Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (NYSE:TMO) Stake Increased by Monte Financial Group LLC

Monte Financial Group LLC raised its stake in Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (NYSE:TMO) by 2.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,270 shares of the medical research company’s stock after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the period. Monte Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Thermo Fisher Scientific were worth $1,181,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in Thermo Fisher Scientific during the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Missouri Trust & Investment Co acquired a new position in Thermo Fisher Scientific in the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Endeavor Private Wealth Inc. bought a new stake in Thermo Fisher Scientific during the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Decker Retirement Planning Inc. bought a new position in shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific in the 4th quarter worth about $43,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.23% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Stephens started coverage on shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. They set an “overweight” rating and a $680.00 price objective on the stock. Bank of America dropped their price target on Thermo Fisher Scientific from $675.00 to $660.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 13th. StockNews.com upgraded Thermo Fisher Scientific from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Bernstein Bank raised their target price on Thermo Fisher Scientific from $565.00 to $625.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific from $680.00 to $665.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Thermo Fisher Scientific currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $648.95.

Thermo Fisher Scientific Price Performance

Shares of NYSE TMO opened at $575.21 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $533.60 and a two-hundred day moving average of $569.32. The company has a market capitalization of $220.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.06, a PEG ratio of 3.82 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a current ratio of 1.63, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. has a twelve month low of $493.30 and a twelve month high of $627.88.

Thermo Fisher Scientific (NYSE:TMO) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The medical research company reported $5.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.25 by $0.03. Thermo Fisher Scientific had a net margin of 14.48% and a return on equity of 17.49%. The firm had revenue of $10.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.63 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $5.69 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. will post 21.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Thermo Fisher Scientific Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 13th were given a dividend of $0.39 per share. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.27%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 13th. Thermo Fisher Scientific’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 9.78%.

Thermo Fisher Scientific declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Friday, November 15th that allows the company to buyback $4.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the medical research company to purchase up to 2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Marc N. Casper sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $554.29, for a total value of $5,542,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 121,192 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $67,175,513.68. This trade represents a 7.62 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders sold a total of 44,850 shares of company stock valued at $24,666,097 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Thermo Fisher Scientific Profile

Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc provides life sciences solutions, analytical instruments, specialty diagnostics, and laboratory products and biopharma services in the North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and internationally. The company's Life Sciences Solutions segment offers reagents, instruments, and consumables for biological and medical research, discovery, and production of drugs and vaccines, as well as diagnosis of infections and diseases; and solutions include biosciences, genetic sciences, and bio production to pharmaceutical, biotechnology, agricultural, clinical, healthcare, academic, and government markets.