Inspire Advisors LLC Boosts Stake in Bruker Co. (NASDAQ:BRKR)

Inspire Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Bruker Co. (NASDAQ:BRKR) by 10.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,609 shares of the medical research company’s stock after acquiring an additional 330 shares during the period. Inspire Advisors LLC’s holdings in Bruker were worth $212,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its position in Bruker by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 13,287 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $779,000 after acquiring an additional 177 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System grew its position in Bruker by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 30,725 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,801,000 after acquiring an additional 222 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc grew its position in Bruker by 5.6% during the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 4,233 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $248,000 after acquiring an additional 223 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. grew its position in Bruker by 37.5% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 909 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $53,000 after acquiring an additional 248 shares during the period. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in shares of Bruker by 13.5% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,164 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $127,000 after buying an additional 257 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.52% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BRKR has been the subject of several analyst reports. Barclays decreased their target price on Bruker from $69.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised Bruker from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $60.00 target price for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Bank of America upped their target price on Bruker from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. UBS Group initiated coverage on Bruker in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $66.00 target price for the company. Finally, Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Bruker in a research report on Monday, February 24th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $70.50.

Bruker Trading Down 1.3 %

Shares of BRKR opened at $44.96 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $6.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 59.16, a P/E/G ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 1.18. Bruker Co. has a one year low of $44.82 and a one year high of $94.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 1.60. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $54.21 and a 200 day moving average price of $58.66.

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

Bruker Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.05 per share. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. Bruker’s payout ratio is currently 26.32%.

Bruker Company Profile

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.