Creative Planning Decreases Stock Position in Bruker Co. (NASDAQ:BRKR)

Creative Planning lessened its stake in shares of Bruker Co. (NASDAQ:BRKR) by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 11,656 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 430 shares during the period. Creative Planning’s holdings in Bruker were worth $805,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of BRKR. Marshall Wace LLP grew its position in Bruker by 127.8% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,389,537 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $88,666,000 after acquiring an additional 779,549 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. bought a new position in Bruker in the 2nd quarter valued at $36,472,000. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its position in Bruker by 123.6% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 555,468 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $35,444,000 after acquiring an additional 307,021 shares during the last quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. grew its position in Bruker by 78.3% in the 2nd quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 593,091 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $37,845,000 after acquiring an additional 260,363 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Point72 Europe London LLP grew its position in Bruker by 262.9% in the 2nd quarter. Point72 Europe London LLP now owns 333,997 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $21,312,000 after acquiring an additional 241,959 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.52% of the company’s stock.

Bruker Trading Up 4.7 %

Bruker stock opened at $59.29 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $64.23 and a two-hundred day moving average of $67.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a current ratio of 1.65. Bruker Co. has a one year low of $55.12 and a one year high of $94.86. The stock has a market cap of $8.98 billion, a PE ratio of 24.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 1.18.

Bruker (NASDAQ:BRKR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The medical research company reported $0.52 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.52. Bruker had a return on equity of 24.92% and a net margin of 11.29%. The company had revenue of $800.70 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $799.44 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.50 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 17.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Bruker Co. will post 2.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bruker Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 2nd were paid a $0.05 dividend. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.34%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 30th. Bruker’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 8.30%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BRKR has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on Bruker from $72.00 to $60.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. Wolfe Research downgraded Bruker from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Citigroup dropped their price target on Bruker from $95.00 to $80.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Barclays initiated coverage on Bruker in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $75.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on Bruker in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $78.00 price target on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $80.82.

Bruker Profile

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.