Short Interest in Mettler-Toledo International Inc. (NYSE:MTD) Rises By 15.2%

Mettler-Toledo International Inc. (NYSE:MTD) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 407,600 shares, an increase of 15.2% from the January 15th total of 353,700 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 142,300 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.9 days. Approximately 2.0% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MTD has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of Mettler-Toledo International in a report on Friday, December 13th. They set a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Mettler-Toledo International from $1,350.00 to $1,400.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on Mettler-Toledo International from $1,362.00 to $1,369.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on shares of Mettler-Toledo International from $1,550.00 to $1,450.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Citigroup raised Mettler-Toledo International from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $1,200.00 to $1,300.00 in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Mettler-Toledo International presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $1,368.00.

Mettler-Toledo International Trading Down 1.8 %

NYSE:MTD opened at $1,273.44 on Monday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $1,284.29 and a 200 day simple moving average of $1,337.41. Mettler-Toledo International has a 1-year low of $1,142.91 and a 1-year high of $1,546.93. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.87 billion, a PE ratio of 31.42, a P/E/G ratio of 4.80 and a beta of 1.13.

Mettler-Toledo International (NYSE:MTD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The medical instruments supplier reported $12.41 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $11.76 by $0.65. Mettler-Toledo International had a net margin of 22.29% and a negative return on equity of 564.51%. On average, equities analysts predict that Mettler-Toledo International will post 41.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Gerry Keller sold 600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,351.34, for a total transaction of $810,804.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 6 shares in the company, valued at $8,108.04. The trade was a 99.01 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 1.94% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Mettler-Toledo International

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Benjamin Edwards Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Mettler-Toledo International by 8.8% during the fourth quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 210 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $257,000 after purchasing an additional 17 shares during the last quarter. BLI Banque de Luxembourg Investments acquired a new stake in shares of Mettler-Toledo International during the fourth quarter worth $10,867,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its holdings in shares of Mettler-Toledo International by 28.1% during the fourth quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 47,295 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock valued at $57,874,000 after acquiring an additional 10,388 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its position in shares of Mettler-Toledo International by 9.8% during the fourth quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 70,935 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $86,802,000 after purchasing an additional 6,312 shares during the period. Finally, Algert Global LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Mettler-Toledo International by 12.7% in the 4th quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 3,611 shares of the medical instruments supplier’s stock worth $4,419,000 after purchasing an additional 406 shares in the last quarter. 95.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Mettler-Toledo International Company Profile

Mettler-Toledo International Inc manufactures and supplies precision instruments and services in the Americas, Europe, Asia, and internationally. It operates through five segments: U.S. Operations, Swiss Operations, Western European Operations, Chinese Operations, and Other. The company’s laboratory instruments include laboratory balances, liquid pipetting solutions, automated laboratory reactors, real-time analytics, titrators, pH meters, process analytics sensors and analyzer technologies, physical value analyzers, density and refractometry, thermal analysis systems, and other analytical instruments; and LabX, a laboratory software platform to manage and analyze data generated from its instruments.