Mettler-Toledo International (NYSE:MTD) Hits New 12-Month High – Still a Buy?

Mettler-Toledo International, Inc. (NYSE:MTD) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday. The stock traded as high as $1,730.33 and last traded at $1,719.0770, with a volume of 10,536 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $1,698.04.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Rothschild & Co Redburn initiated coverage on Mettler-Toledo International in a research report on Wednesday, September 2nd. They set a “sell” rating and a $1,200.00 price target for the company. Royal Bank Of Canada started coverage on shares of Mettler-Toledo International in a report on Tuesday, September 1st. They issued a “sector perform” rating and a $1,515.00 price objective on the stock. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Mettler-Toledo International from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Monday, October 19th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on shares of Mettler-Toledo International from $1,400.00 to $1,600.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Mettler-Toledo International from $1,225.00 to $1,450.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $1,469.15.

Mettler-Toledo International Trading Down 2.6%

The business’s 50-day moving average price is $1,518.33 and its 200 day moving average price is $1,344.35. The company has a market cap of $33.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.76, a P/E/G ratio of 3.47 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 159.45, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 1.12.

Mettler-Toledo International (NYSE:MTD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 5th. The medical instruments supplier reported $12.57 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $12.13 by $0.44. Mettler-Toledo International had a net margin of 21.91% and a negative return on equity of 1,212.14%. The company had revenue of $1.09 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.07 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $11.15 EPS. Mettler-Toledo International’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that Mettler-Toledo International, Inc. will post 47.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Mettler-Toledo International

In other news, CEO Patrick Kaltenbach sold 942 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,425.00, for a total value of $1,342,350.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 4,480 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,384,000. This trade represents a 17.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.71% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Mettler-Toledo International

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MTD. XXEC Inc. acquired a new stake in Mettler-Toledo International during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $77,044,000. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in Mettler-Toledo International in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $2,404,713,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in Mettler-Toledo International in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $762,553,000. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in Mettler-Toledo International by 908.6% in the 2nd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 459,064 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $586,459,000 after acquiring an additional 413,547 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE bought a new position in shares of Mettler-Toledo International during the second quarter valued at $240,817,000. Institutional investors own 95.07% of the company’s stock.

Mettler-Toledo International Company Profile

Mettler-Toledo International Inc (NYSE: MTD) develops and manufactures precision instruments and related services for laboratory, industrial, and retail applications. Its products help customers weigh, measure, analyze, inspect, and control materials and processes with high accuracy.

The company’s laboratory offerings include balances and scales, analytical instruments, titration and pH systems, thermal analysis equipment, spectroscopy products, laboratory automation solutions, and associated software.