Bruker (NASDAQ:BRKR) Reaches New 52-Week Low – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Bruker Co. (NASDAQ:BRKR) reached a new 52-week low on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $45.08 and last traded at $45.30, with a volume of 1059827 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $47.40.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Barclays lowered their price target on Bruker from $69.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 10th. UBS Group assumed coverage on Bruker in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $66.00 price target on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group raised Bruker from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $60.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Bruker in a report on Monday, February 24th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on Bruker from $70.00 to $57.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $70.50.

Bruker Trading Up 0.0 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $6.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 59.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $54.21 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $58.66. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15.

Bruker (NASDAQ:BRKR) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The medical research company reported $0.76 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Bruker Co. will post 2.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Bruker Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a $0.05 dividend. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.44%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. Bruker’s payout ratio is 26.32%.

Institutional Trading of Bruker

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. FMR LLC lifted its position in Bruker by 21.4% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 14,306,122 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $987,981,000 after acquiring an additional 2,521,904 shares in the last quarter. London Co. of Virginia grew its stake in Bruker by 78.4% in the 4th quarter. London Co. of Virginia now owns 4,193,454 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $245,820,000 after buying an additional 1,843,294 shares in the last quarter. Sculptor Capital LP grew its stake in Bruker by 484.1% in the 4th quarter. Sculptor Capital LP now owns 1,714,015 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $100,476,000 after buying an additional 1,420,569 shares in the last quarter. FIL Ltd grew its stake in Bruker by 262.3% in the 4th quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 1,961,416 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $114,978,000 after buying an additional 1,420,102 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Steadfast Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of Bruker in the fourth quarter worth $63,997,000. 79.52% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.