Bruker Co. (NASDAQ:BRKR) Short Interest Update

Bruker Co. (NASDAQ:BRKR) saw a significant growth in short interest in March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 7,980,000 shares, a growth of 39.8% from the February 28th total of 5,710,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,760,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.5 days. Approximately 7.8% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Bruker Price Performance

Shares of Bruker stock traded down $0.40 during trading on Monday, hitting $41.69. 437,439 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,355,282. The company has a market cap of $6.32 billion, a PE ratio of 54.96, a PEG ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 1.18. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $50.54 and its 200 day moving average price is $56.91. Bruker has a twelve month low of $40.64 and a twelve month high of $94.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.60 and a quick ratio of 0.77.

Bruker (NASDAQ:BRKR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The medical research company reported $0.76 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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%. Analysts forecast that Bruker will post 2.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Bruker Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th were issued a dividend of $0.05 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 17th. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.48%. Bruker’s dividend payout ratio is 26.32%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BRKR has been the topic of several recent research reports. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on Bruker from $70.00 to $57.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 14th. UBS Group initiated coverage on Bruker in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $66.00 price target on the stock. Barclays cut their price objective on Bruker from $69.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised Bruker from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $60.00 target price on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Bruker in a report on Monday, February 24th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Bruker has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $70.50.

Institutional Trading of Bruker

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. True Wealth Design LLC grew its position in shares of Bruker by 4,636.4% during the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 521 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 510 shares during the period. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Bruker by 2,324.1% during the 4th quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC now owns 703 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 674 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. raised its position in shares of Bruker by 37.5% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 909 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $53,000 after acquiring an additional 248 shares during the last quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Bruker by 18.2% in the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 1,273 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $75,000 after purchasing an additional 196 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of Bruker by 47.5% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,279 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $75,000 after purchasing an additional 412 shares during the last quarter. 79.52% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Bruker

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.