Thermo Fisher Scientific (NYSE:TMO) Sets New 12-Month High – Still a Buy?

Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (NYSE:TMO) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday. The company traded as high as $710.84 and last traded at $707.4220, with a volume of 232,237 shares. The stock had previously closed at $693.02.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on TMO shares. UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $800.00 price target on shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating and set a $720.00 price objective on shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific in a research report on Friday, September 25th. BMO Capital Markets cut shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 9th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, October 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut Thermo Fisher Scientific from an “overweight” rating to an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Thermo Fisher Scientific currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $684.55.

Thermo Fisher Scientific Trading Up 0.7%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 1.41 and a current ratio of 1.81. The stock has a market cap of $262.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.39, a P/E/G ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 0.87. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $653.50 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $552.54.

Thermo Fisher Scientific (NYSE:TMO) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 21st. The medical research company reported $6.68 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.40 by $0.28. Thermo Fisher Scientific had a net margin of 14.94% and a return on equity of 17.33%. The business had revenue of $12.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.95 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $5.79 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. will post 25.23 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Lisa P. Britt sold 11,440 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $613.12, for a total transaction of $7,014,092.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 14,784 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,064,366.08. This represents a 43.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Marc N. Casper sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $629.27, for a total value of $6,292,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 123,925 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $77,982,284.75. This represents a 7.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 73,368 shares of company stock worth $43,896,820 over the last 90 days. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Thermo Fisher Scientific

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Legacy Wealth Managment LLC ID grew its position in shares of Thermo Fisher Scientific by 78.6% in the first quarter. Legacy Wealth Managment LLC ID now owns 50 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. Kilter Group LLC bought a new stake in Thermo Fisher Scientific in the 2nd quarter valued at $25,000. Allied Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Thermo Fisher Scientific in the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. Pingora Partners LLC bought a new position in Thermo Fisher Scientific during the 2nd quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Navigoe LLC bought a new position in Thermo Fisher Scientific during the 2nd quarter worth $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.23% of the company’s stock.

About Thermo Fisher Scientific

Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc is a global supplier of laboratory products, analytical instruments, reagents, consumables, software and services used in scientific research, healthcare, pharmaceuticals, biotechnology and industrial applications. The company serves customers ranging from academic institutions and government agencies to hospitals, clinical laboratories and pharmaceutical manufacturers.

Its offerings include instruments and systems for genetic analysis, mass spectrometry, chromatography, electron microscopy and materials science, as well as molecular biology reagents, cell culture products, laboratory plastics and research chemicals.