Short Interest in Bruker Co. (NASDAQ:BRKR) Rises By 8.4%

Bruker Co. (NASDAQ:BRKR) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in the month of September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totalling 4,260,000 shares, an increase of 8.4% from the September 15th total of 3,930,000 shares. Approximately 4.1% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 1,090,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.9 days.

Bruker Price Performance

NASDAQ:BRKR traded down $1.84 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $61.27. 1,638,573 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,044,984. The company has a quick ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 1.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18. The stock has a market cap of $8.90 billion, a PE ratio of 22.28, a PEG ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 1.18. Bruker has a 12 month low of $53.79 and a 12 month high of $94.86. The company has a fifty day moving average of $65.13 and a 200 day moving average of $69.49.

Bruker (NASDAQ:BRKR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The medical research company reported $0.52 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.52. Bruker had a net margin of 11.29% and a return on equity of 24.92%. The business had revenue of $800.70 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $799.44 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.50 earnings per share. Bruker’s revenue was up 17.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Bruker will post 2.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bruker Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 2nd were given a dividend of $0.05 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 30th. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.33%. Bruker’s payout ratio is presently 7.27%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently commented on the company. Citigroup reduced their target price on Bruker from $95.00 to $80.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Wolfe Research lowered shares of Bruker from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on shares of Bruker from $72.00 to $60.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. TD Cowen lowered their price objective on Bruker from $74.00 to $72.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Barclays assumed coverage on Bruker in a research report on Tuesday. They set an “overweight” rating and a $75.00 target price for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $80.82.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Bruker

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Rheos Capital Works Inc. bought a new position in Bruker in the third quarter valued at approximately $3,453,000. Covea Finance bought a new position in shares of Bruker in the 3rd quarter worth $1,568,000. UMB Bank n.a. grew its stake in shares of Bruker by 115.3% during the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 661 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 354 shares during the period. CWM LLC increased its holdings in Bruker by 191.9% in the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 13,942 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $963,000 after purchasing an additional 9,165 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in Bruker by 81.0% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 867 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $60,000 after buying an additional 388 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.