Janney Montgomery Scott LLC Trims Position in Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (NYSE:TMO)

Janney Montgomery Scott LLC trimmed its position in shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (NYSE:TMO) by 3.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 131,938 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 5,101 shares during the quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC’s holdings in Thermo Fisher Scientific were worth $68,638,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in Thermo Fisher Scientific in the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Thermo Fisher Scientific during the 3rd quarter worth $27,000. Missouri Trust & Investment Co acquired a new stake in Thermo Fisher Scientific during the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. acquired a new stake in Thermo Fisher Scientific during the 4th quarter worth $43,000. Finally, HWG Holdings LP acquired a new stake in Thermo Fisher Scientific during the 2nd quarter worth $50,000. 89.23% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Thermo Fisher Scientific Stock Performance

NYSE:TMO opened at $574.72 on Thursday. Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. has a 1-year low of $493.30 and a 1-year high of $627.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 1.63 and a quick ratio of 1.26. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $530.86 and its 200 day moving average price is $568.96. The firm has a market cap of $219.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.81 and a beta of 0.76.

Thermo Fisher Scientific (NYSE:TMO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The medical research company reported $5.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.25 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $10.60 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.63 billion. Thermo Fisher Scientific had a return on equity of 17.49% and a net margin of 14.48%. The business’s revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $5.69 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. will post 21.68 EPS for the current year.

Thermo Fisher Scientific Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 13th were paid a dividend of $0.39 per share. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend 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 announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Friday, November 15th that allows the company to repurchase $4.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the medical research company to reacquire up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on TMO shares. TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific from $656.00 to $686.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Scotiabank initiated coverage on shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. They set a “sector perform” rating and a $605.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific from $670.00 to $660.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced 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. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Thermo Fisher Scientific has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $648.95.

Insider Transactions at Thermo Fisher Scientific

In related news, CEO Marc N. Casper sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $530.26, for a total value of $5,302,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 111,192 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $58,960,669.92. The trade was a 8.25 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Gianluca Pettiti sold 300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $560.16, for a total transaction of $168,048.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 16,663 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,333,946.08. The trade was a 1.77 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 47,150 shares of company stock valued at $25,954,465 in the last 90 days. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Thermo Fisher Scientific Company 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.