Citigroup Cuts Bruker (NASDAQ:BRKR) Price Target to $50.00

Bruker (NASDAQ:BRKR) had its target price trimmed by Citigroup from $75.00 to $50.00 in a research report sent to investors on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a buy rating on the medical research company’s stock.

BRKR has been the subject of several other research reports. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Bruker from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Barclays lowered their price target on Bruker from $69.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 10th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on Bruker from $70.00 to $57.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 14th. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Bruker in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $66.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Bruker in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $68.00.

Bruker Trading Up 13.3 %

NASDAQ:BRKR opened at $41.19 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 54.20, a PEG ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 1.18. 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 has a one year low of $34.10 and a one year high of $90.56. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $46.89 and its 200 day simple moving average is $55.16.

Bruker (NASDAQ:BRKR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The medical research company reported $0.76 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.75 by $0.01. Bruker had a return on equity of 21.01% and a net margin of 3.36%. As a group, analysts forecast that Bruker will post 2.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bruker Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th were given a dividend of $0.05 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 17th. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.49%. Bruker’s payout ratio is 26.32%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Bruker

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of BRKR. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Bruker by 2,324.1% in the fourth quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC now owns 703 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 674 shares in the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its holdings in Bruker by 274.9% in the 1st quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,091 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 800 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its stake in Bruker by 37.5% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 909 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 248 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in Bruker by 47.5% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,279 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $75,000 after buying an additional 412 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quadrant Capital Group LLC raised its position in shares of Bruker by 18.2% during the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 1,273 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $75,000 after buying an additional 196 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.