Argent Trust Co Boosts Stock Position in Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. $TMO

Argent Trust Co raised its stake in Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (NYSE:TMO) by 5.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 21,571 shares of the medical research company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,125 shares during the quarter. Argent Trust Co’s holdings in Thermo Fisher Scientific were worth $10,462,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Financial Management Network Inc. increased its stake in Thermo Fisher Scientific by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. Financial Management Network Inc. now owns 511 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $248,000 after buying an additional 18 shares during the period. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC increased its stake in shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific by 8.8% during the third quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 236 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $114,000 after acquiring an additional 19 shares during the period. White Pine Capital LLC raised its holdings in Thermo Fisher Scientific by 3.2% during the third quarter. White Pine Capital LLC now owns 611 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $296,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC lifted its position in Thermo Fisher Scientific by 35.1% in the third quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 77 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. Finally, Hopwood Financial Services Inc. increased its position in Thermo Fisher Scientific by 9.1% during the 3rd quarter. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. now owns 239 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $116,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.23% of the company’s stock.

Thermo Fisher Scientific Price Performance

Shares of NYSE TMO opened at $520.80 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.89, a quick ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $574.24 and its 200 day moving average price is $547.46. Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. has a 52 week low of $385.46 and a 52 week high of $643.99. The stock has a market cap of $195.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.36, a PEG ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.93.

Thermo Fisher Scientific (NYSE:TMO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The medical research company reported $6.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.45 by $0.12. Thermo Fisher Scientific had a net margin of 15.05% and a return on equity of 16.92%. The company had revenue of $12.22 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.95 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $6.10 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. will post 23.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Thermo Fisher Scientific declared that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Thursday, November 6th that allows the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in outstanding 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 typically a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Thermo Fisher Scientific Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be issued a $0.47 dividend. This is a positive change from Thermo Fisher Scientific’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. Thermo Fisher Scientific’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 9.70%.

Insider Activity at Thermo Fisher Scientific

In other news, EVP Frederick M. Lowery sold 6,912 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $581.94, for a total transaction of $4,022,369.28. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 14,367 shares in the company, valued at $8,360,731.98. This represents a 32.48% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Gianluca Pettiti sold 400 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $541.20, for a total value of $216,480.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 20,752 shares in the company, valued at $11,230,982.40. This trade represents a 1.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders sold 98,271 shares of company stock worth $56,920,935. 0.33% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on TMO. TD Cowen reduced their price target on Thermo Fisher Scientific from $696.00 to $683.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 30th. KeyCorp raised Thermo Fisher Scientific from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $750.00 target price for the company in a report on Sunday, December 7th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific from $625.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific from $583.00 to $700.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 9th. Finally, HSBC upgraded shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $633.68.

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.