Wall Street Zen Upgrades Thermo Fisher Scientific (NYSE:TMO) to “Buy”

Thermo Fisher Scientific (NYSE:TMO) was upgraded by stock analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued to investors on Friday.

TMO has been the subject of several other research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Thermo Fisher Scientific from $600.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 9th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific from $585.00 to $625.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 23rd. Redburn Partners set a $580.00 target price on shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Thermo Fisher Scientific in a research report on Tuesday, December 9th. They set a “buy” rating and a $685.00 price objective for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $625.47.

Thermo Fisher Scientific Trading Down 2.2%

Shares of NYSE:TMO opened at $625.42 on Friday. Thermo Fisher Scientific has a twelve month low of $385.46 and a twelve month high of $643.99. The company has a current ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The firm has a market cap of $234.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.13, a P/E/G ratio of 4.21 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a 50 day moving average of $590.88 and a 200-day moving average of $530.87.

Thermo Fisher Scientific (NYSE:TMO) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 22nd. The medical research company reported $5.79 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.50 by $0.29. Thermo Fisher Scientific had a return on equity of 16.97% and a net margin of 15.02%.The firm had revenue of $11.12 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.90 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $5.28 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Thermo Fisher Scientific will post 23.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Thermo Fisher Scientific announced that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Thursday, November 6th that allows the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the medical research company to buy up to 2.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In related news, COO Michel Lagarde sold 32,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $583.39, for a total transaction of $18,668,480.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 65,480 shares in the company, valued at approximately $38,200,377.20. This trade represents a 32.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Marc N. Casper sold 7,250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $566.10, for a total transaction of $4,104,225.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 113,762 shares in the company, valued at approximately $64,400,668.20. This represents a 5.99% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 131,767 shares of company stock valued at $76,467,793 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Thermo Fisher Scientific

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in TMO. JPL Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Thermo Fisher Scientific in the third quarter worth $28,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific by 126.9% during the 3rd quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 59 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Beacon Financial Strategies CORP bought a new position in shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Olistico Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific during the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Capital A Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Thermo Fisher Scientific by 825.0% in the 2nd quarter. Capital A Wealth Management LLC now owns 74 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. 89.23% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Thermo Fisher Scientific Company Profile

Thermo Fisher Scientific (NYSE: TMO) is a global provider of scientific instrumentation, reagents and consumables, software, and services that support research, clinical, and industrial laboratories. The company supplies analytical instruments and laboratory equipment, life sciences reagents and kits, specialty diagnostics, and a broad range of consumables used by researchers, clinicians, and manufacturers. Its offerings also include laboratory information management and data-analysis software, as well as service solutions such as instrument maintenance, validation, and logistics that help customers run complex workflows efficiently.

Thermo Fisher operates through multiple business areas that broadly cover life sciences solutions, analytical instruments, specialty diagnostics, and laboratory products and biopharma services, including contract development and manufacturing for pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies.