Gradient Investments LLC Cuts Stock Holdings in Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. $TMO

Gradient Investments LLC cut its stake in Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (NYSE:TMO) by 27.9% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 3,278 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 1,269 shares during the quarter. Gradient Investments LLC’s holdings in Thermo Fisher Scientific were worth $1,899,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific in the 2nd quarter valued at about $2,264,615,000. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific by 88.9% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,699,460 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,309,292,000 after buying an additional 1,270,191 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in Thermo Fisher Scientific by 54.7% in the third quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 3,571,857 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,732,422,000 after acquiring an additional 1,262,967 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in Thermo Fisher Scientific by 21.0% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 5,925,671 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $2,874,069,000 after acquiring an additional 1,028,125 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific by 282.5% in the 2nd quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 1,323,065 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $536,450,000 after purchasing an additional 977,127 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.23% of the company’s stock.

Thermo Fisher Scientific Stock Performance

Shares of TMO stock opened at $478.29 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $540.67 and its two-hundred day moving average is $548.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 1.53 and a current ratio of 1.89. Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. has a 1 year low of $385.46 and a 1 year high of $643.99. The firm has a market cap of $177.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.96, a PEG ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.96.

Thermo Fisher Scientific (NYSE:TMO) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The medical research company reported $6.57 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.45 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $12.22 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.95 billion. Thermo Fisher Scientific had a return on equity of 16.92% and a net margin of 15.05%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $6.10 EPS. Analysts predict that Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. will post 23.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Thermo Fisher Scientific Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be issued a $0.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 13th. This is an increase from Thermo Fisher Scientific’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Thermo Fisher Scientific’s dividend payout ratio is currently 10.60%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently issued reports on TMO. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific from $660.00 to $685.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Thermo Fisher Scientific from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 28th. Barclays upped their price objective on Thermo Fisher Scientific from $625.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $650.00 price objective on shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific in a report on Monday, January 5th. Finally, TD Cowen decreased their target price on Thermo Fisher Scientific from $696.00 to $683.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $633.68.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Thermo Fisher Scientific news, CEO Marc N. Casper sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $512.40, for a total transaction of $2,562,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 123,925 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $63,499,170. This trade represents a 3.88% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Gianluca Pettiti sold 400 shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific stock in a transaction on Monday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $541.20, for a total transaction of $216,480.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 20,752 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,230,982.40. This represents a 1.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

About Thermo Fisher Scientific

Thermo Fisher Scientific (NYSE: TMO) is a global provider of scientific instrumentation, reagents and consumables, software, and services that support research, clinical, and industrial laboratories. The company supplies analytical instruments and laboratory equipment, life sciences reagents and kits, specialty diagnostics, and a broad range of consumables used by researchers, clinicians, and manufacturers. Its offerings also include laboratory information management and data-analysis software, as well as service solutions such as instrument maintenance, validation, and logistics that help customers run complex workflows efficiently.

Thermo Fisher operates through multiple business areas that broadly cover life sciences solutions, analytical instruments, specialty diagnostics, and laboratory products and biopharma services, including contract development and manufacturing for pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies.