Bruker (NASDAQ:BRKR) Hits New 1-Year Low – Should You Sell?

Shares of Bruker Co. (NASDAQ:BRKR) hit a new 52-week low on Friday . The stock traded as low as $43.51 and last traded at $43.82, with a volume of 290690 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $44.47.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on BRKR. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Bruker from $69.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Bruker from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $60.00 target price for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating on shares of Bruker in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Bruker from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on shares of Bruker from $70.00 to $57.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $70.50.

Bruker Stock Down 0.5 %

The company has a market capitalization of $6.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 58.33, a PEG ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 1.18. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $52.49 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $57.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.60 and a quick ratio of 0.77.

Bruker (NASDAQ:BRKR) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The medical research company reported $0.76 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.75 by $0.01. Bruker had a net margin of 3.36% and a return on equity of 21.01%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Bruker Co. will post 2.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bruker Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th will be issued a $0.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.45%. Bruker’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.32%.

Institutional Trading of Bruker

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of Bruker by 25.5% in the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 16,459 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $965,000 after acquiring an additional 3,349 shares during the period. Gordian Capital Singapore Pte Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Bruker in the 4th quarter worth about $234,000. EDENTREE ASSET MANAGEMENT Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Bruker by 11.2% in the 4th quarter. EDENTREE ASSET MANAGEMENT Ltd now owns 158,000 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $9,262,000 after acquiring an additional 15,900 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its holdings in shares of Bruker by 17.1% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 356,969 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $20,926,000 after acquiring an additional 52,214 shares during the period. Finally, Voloridge Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Bruker by 179.6% in the 4th quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 18,906 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,108,000 after acquiring an additional 12,145 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.52% of the company’s stock.

About Bruker

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.