Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (NYSE:TMO) Shares Purchased by Merit Financial Group LLC

Merit Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (NYSE:TMO) by 54.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 9,851 shares of the medical research company’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,470 shares during the quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Thermo Fisher Scientific were worth $5,125,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in TMO. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific by 76,051.4% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,416,416 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $876,152,000 after buying an additional 1,414,556 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its position in Thermo Fisher Scientific by 19.7% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,877,459 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $4,872,761,000 after acquiring an additional 1,294,453 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its position in shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific by 32.2% during the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,481,257 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,372,157,000 after purchasing an additional 604,895 shares in the last quarter. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG acquired a new position in shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $254,412,000. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. lifted its stake in Thermo Fisher Scientific by 743.6% during the second quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 336,537 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $186,105,000 after purchasing an additional 296,646 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.23% of the company’s stock.

Thermo Fisher Scientific Price Performance

NYSE TMO opened at $559.72 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $529.96 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $568.09. Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. has a 12-month low of $493.30 and a 12-month high of $627.88. The stock has a market capitalization of $214.09 billion, a PE ratio of 35.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.59 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a quick ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64.

Thermo Fisher Scientific (NYSE:TMO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The medical research company reported $5.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.25 by $0.03. Thermo Fisher Scientific had a net margin of 14.48% and a return on equity of 17.49%. The firm had revenue of $10.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.63 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $5.69 earnings per share. Thermo Fisher Scientific’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. will post 21.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Thermo Fisher Scientific declared that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Friday, November 15th that authorizes the company to buyback $4.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the medical research company to purchase up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Thermo Fisher Scientific Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th were issued a dividend of $0.39 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 13th. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.28%. Thermo Fisher Scientific’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 9.78%.

Insider Transactions at Thermo Fisher Scientific

In related news, CEO Marc N. Casper sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $554.29, for a total transaction of $5,542,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 121,192 shares in the company, valued at $67,175,513.68. This represents a 7.62 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Gianluca Pettiti sold 300 shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $560.16, for a total value of $168,048.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 16,663 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,333,946.08. This represents a 1.77 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 47,150 shares of company stock worth $25,954,465. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Thermo Fisher Scientific from $670.00 to $647.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 13th. Evercore ISI decreased their price target on Thermo Fisher Scientific from $630.00 to $620.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $630.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Stephens began coverage on shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $680.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific from $670.00 to $660.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $648.95.

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.