Thermo Fisher Scientific (NYSE:TMO) Earns Sector Perform Rating from Analysts at Scotiabank

Equities research analysts at Scotiabank began coverage on shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific (NYSE:TMO) in a report issued on Monday. The firm set a “sector perform” rating on the medical research company’s stock.

A number of other equities analysts also recently commented on the stock. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific from $656.00 to $686.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Sanford C. Bernstein dropped their price objective on Thermo Fisher Scientific from $625.00 to $620.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Redburn Atlantic began coverage on shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific in a report on Monday, October 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $680.00 target price for the company. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific from $620.00 to $610.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific from $650.00 to $670.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Thermo Fisher Scientific presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $652.30.

Thermo Fisher Scientific Stock Up 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE:TMO opened at $524.05 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. The business’s 50 day moving average is $543.04 and its 200 day moving average is $572.17. The stock has a market cap of $200.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.54 and a beta of 0.77. Thermo Fisher Scientific has a 52-week low of $493.30 and a 52-week high of $627.88.

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

Thermo Fisher Scientific announced that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Friday, November 15th that allows the company to buyback $4.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the medical research company to purchase up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Thermo Fisher Scientific

In other news, EVP Gianluca Pettiti sold 300 shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $560.16, for a total value of $168,048.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 16,663 shares in the company, valued at $9,333,946.08. This trade represents a 1.77 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Marc N. Casper sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $530.26, for a total transaction of $5,302,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 111,192 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $58,960,669.92. This trade represents a 8.25 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 47,150 shares of company stock valued at $25,954,465. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific during the third quarter worth $26,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Thermo Fisher Scientific during the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. Stephens Consulting LLC lifted its stake in Thermo Fisher Scientific by 116.0% in the 2nd quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 54 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 29 shares in the last quarter. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific in the second quarter valued at approximately $50,000. Finally, HWG Holdings LP acquired a new stake in shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific in the second quarter valued at approximately $50,000. 89.23% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Thermo Fisher Scientific

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.