Bruker Rides On Robust NANO & CALID Groups, Recent Buyouts

On Feb 25, we issued an updated research report on Bruker Corporation (NASDAQ:BRKR) . The stock carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). The company’s Scientific Instruments segment has been performing well, driven by strong results from NANO and CALID groups.

In 2018, the Bruker Nano Surfaces group, which includes Bruker’s atomic force microscopy product, reported high single-digit revenue growth. Growth was driven by solid academic markets and strong industrial research demand for advanced X-ray and Nano Materials Analysis products.

This apart, acquisitions like Anasys and JPK (completed in April and July 2018, respectively) also contributed to the segment’s top line. Nano Surfaces and Nano-analysis revenues increased in 2018 with organic growth supplemented by these two acquisitions.

The year 2019 is expected to be no exception in terms of revenue growth.

In mid-December 2018, NANO closed the acquisition of Alicona Imaging, a provider of optical metrology products for lab and production applications, which will start to contribute to the group's results from the beginning of 2019.

The CALID Group is also delivering well with impressive full-year revenues in high-single digits. Growth was driven by mass spectrometry and molecular spectroscopy businesses. The company eyes the benefits of its life science mass spec portfolio transformation and expects further growth in 2019 and beyond as recently launched products like timsTOF Pro and the new scimaX MRMS ramp up its product menu.

On the flip side, Bruker conducts 80% of its business in the international markets. As a result, adverse currency fluctuations may weigh on profits. Also, headwinds like unfavorable economic conditions and an intense competition pose threats to the stock.

Other Key Picks

Some other top-ranked stocks in the broader medical space are Surmodics, Inc (NASDAQ:SRDX) , Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) and Cardiovascular Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSII) .

Surmodics has a long-term expected earnings growth rate of 10%. The stock sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Abbott’s long-term earnings growth rate is projected to be 11.7%. The stock carries a Zacks Rank #2.

Cardiovascular Systems exceeded the Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the trailing four quarters, with the average beat being 77.1%. The stock sports a Zacks Rank of 1.

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