South Dakota Investment Council Makes New Investment in Bruker Co. (NASDAQ:BRKR)

South Dakota Investment Council purchased a new stake in Bruker Co. (NASDAQ:BRKR) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 12,000 shares of the medical research company’s stock, valued at approximately $703,000.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its position in Bruker by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 13,287 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $779,000 after purchasing an additional 177 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its holdings in Bruker by 5.6% in the 4th quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 4,233 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $248,000 after buying an additional 223 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. raised its holdings in Bruker by 37.5% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 909 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $53,000 after buying an additional 248 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in Bruker by 13.5% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,164 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $127,000 after buying an additional 257 shares during the period. Finally, US Bancorp DE grew its holdings in Bruker by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 12,700 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $877,000 after acquiring an additional 260 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.52% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BRKR has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Bruker in a report on Friday, January 17th. Citigroup cut their target price on Bruker from $80.00 to $75.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Bank of America increased their price target on Bruker from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Bruker from $78.00 to $75.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised Bruker from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $60.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $70.50.

Bruker Price Performance

Bruker stock opened at $50.82 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.60, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $56.73 and its 200 day simple moving average is $60.03. Bruker Co. has a 12 month low of $48.07 and a 12 month high of $94.86. The company has a market cap of $7.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 66.87, a PEG ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 1.16.

Bruker (NASDAQ:BRKR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The medical research company reported $0.76 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.75 by $0.01. Bruker had a return on equity of 21.01% and a net margin of 3.36%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Bruker Co. will post 2.69 EPS for the current year.

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.