AdvisorNet Financial Inc Reduces Stock Holdings in Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (NYSE:TMO)

AdvisorNet Financial Inc lessened its holdings in Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (NYSE:TMO) by 10.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 9,788 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 1,182 shares during the quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc’s holdings in Thermo Fisher Scientific were worth $5,092,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific in the third quarter valued at about $26,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in Thermo Fisher Scientific in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. HWG Holdings LP purchased a new position in Thermo Fisher Scientific during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $50,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific in the 3rd quarter valued at $50,000. Finally, Teachers Insurance & Annuity Association of America acquired a new stake in shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific in the third quarter worth $65,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.23% of the company’s stock.

Thermo Fisher Scientific Trading Up 2.5 %

Shares of TMO stock opened at $555.91 on Tuesday. Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $493.30 and a fifty-two week high of $627.88. The firm has a market capitalization of $212.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.85, a PEG ratio of 3.54 and a beta of 0.76. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $529.92 and its two-hundred day moving average is $568.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a current ratio of 1.63.

Thermo Fisher Scientific (NYSE:TMO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The medical research company reported $5.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.25 by $0.03. Thermo Fisher Scientific had a net margin of 14.48% and a return on equity of 17.49%. The company had revenue of $10.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.63 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $5.69 EPS. Thermo Fisher Scientific’s revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. will post 21.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Thermo Fisher Scientific Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.39 per share. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.28%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. Thermo Fisher Scientific’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 9.78%.

Thermo Fisher Scientific declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Friday, November 15th that allows the company to buyback $4.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the medical research company to purchase up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on TMO. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific from $680.00 to $665.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Bank of America dropped their target price on Thermo Fisher Scientific from $675.00 to $660.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, December 13th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Thermo Fisher Scientific from $670.00 to $647.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. Scotiabank assumed coverage on shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific in a report on Monday, December 23rd. They set a “sector perform” rating and a $605.00 target price for the company. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Thermo Fisher Scientific presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $648.95.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Marc N. Casper sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $554.29, for a total transaction of $5,542,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 121,192 shares in the company, valued at $67,175,513.68. This trade represents a 7.62 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Michael A. Boxer sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $560.16, for a total value of $1,120,320.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 12,736 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,134,197.76. The trade was a 13.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 47,150 shares of company stock valued at $25,954,465 in the last three months. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Thermo Fisher Scientific Profile

Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc provides life sciences solutions, analytical instruments, specialty diagnostics, and laboratory products and biopharma services in the North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and internationally. The company's Life Sciences Solutions segment offers reagents, instruments, and consumables for biological and medical research, discovery, and production of drugs and vaccines, as well as diagnosis of infections and diseases; and solutions include biosciences, genetic sciences, and bio production to pharmaceutical, biotechnology, agricultural, clinical, healthcare, academic, and government markets.