Insider Buying: Bruker Co. (NASDAQ:BRKR) CEO Buys 2,608 Shares of Stock

Bruker Co. (NASDAQ:BRKR) CEO Frank H. Laukien acquired 2,608 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 6th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $38.36 per share, for a total transaction of $100,042.88. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 38,462,171 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,475,408,879.56. This represents a 0.01% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link.

Bruker Price Performance

Shares of BRKR traded up $0.91 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $39.21. 2,037,223 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,613,612. The company has a market cap of $5.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 51.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a current ratio of 1.60, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $38.16 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $48.43. Bruker Co. has a 52-week low of $34.10 and a 52-week high of $72.94.

Bruker (NASDAQ:BRKR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The medical research company reported $0.47 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.46 by $0.01. Bruker had a return on equity of 21.01% and a net margin of 3.36%. The business had revenue of $801.40 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $763.83 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.53 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Bruker Co. will post 2.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Bruker Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 27th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be paid a $0.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 16th. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.51%. Bruker’s payout ratio is 38.46%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Bruker

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. bought a new position in shares of Bruker during the first quarter worth $29,000. Allworth Financial LP increased its holdings in Bruker by 92.4% in the 1st quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 758 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 364 shares during the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd lifted its stake in Bruker by 1,354.5% in the 1st quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 800 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 745 shares in the last quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Bruker during the 1st quarter valued at about $42,000. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB grew its position in shares of Bruker by 274.9% during the first quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,091 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 800 shares in the last quarter. 79.52% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently commented on BRKR. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on Bruker from $50.00 to $45.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. Citigroup cut shares of Bruker from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $50.00 to $40.00 in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Bruker from $57.00 to $45.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Bruker from $75.00 to $60.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Bruker in a research report on Monday, February 24th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $56.22.

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.