Billionaire Investor Adds to Danaher Stake After Cutting It Earlier This Year

Dan Loeb‘s Third Point raised its stake in Danaher Corporation (NYSE:DHR) in the second quarter to 540,000 from 525,000 in the first quarter of 2026.

The stake is valued at about $102.8 million as of June 30. In the first quarter of 2026, the investor reduced his stake in Danaher to 525,000 from 600,000 in the fourth quarter of 2025. 

Recent News:

• The company appointed Julie Sawyer Montgomery president and CEO and a member of its board, effective Oct. 1, 2026. Rainer Blair will retire on the same date and remain as a senior advisor through March 31, 2027, to support the leadership transition.
• Last week, the company posted third-quarter adjusted earnings of $2.11 per share, beating the analyst consensus estimate of $1.92. Revenue rose 8.5% year over year to $6.6 billion, beating the analysts’ expectations of $6.559 billion.
• For the fourth quarter of 2026, Danaher anticipates that non-GAAP core revenue excluding respiratory revenue will increase in the 4.0% to 5.0% range year-over-year.
• The company expects respiratory revenue to be an approximately 150 basis point headwind, resulting in core revenue growth of approximately 3.0%.
• Danaher raised its fiscal 2026 adjusted earnings forecast from $8.45-$8.60 per share to $8.57-$8.62 per share versus the consensus of $8.51.
• The company said improving end-market conditions and growth throughout 2026 support its outlook. Excluding respiratory revenue, core revenue growth has averaged 4% to 5% in recent quarters, a range management considers a reasonable starting point for its 2027 outlook.
• Danaher announced an AI collaboration with NVIDIA Corp focused on autonomous science. Danaher will combine its scientific instruments, laboratory software, and automation technologies with NVIDIA’s accelerated computing and AI capabilities.
• The company plans to launch its first AI-powered autonomous lab to accelerate the development of custom antibodies and other molecular tools, with large-scale operations expected to begin in early 2027.

How Danaher Stacks Up vs TMO, A, IQV, WAT, ILMN

This peer comparison is based on a curated set of stocks selected for this analysis: Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc. (TMO), Agilent Technologies Inc. (A), IQVIA Holdings Inc. (IQV), Waters Corp (WAT), and Illumina Inc (ILMN). Over the past year, Danaher gained 5.17%, trailing the peer-group average return of 52.97% by 47.80 percentage points. Danaher also trailed all five peers: Illumina Inc (+168.53%), Waters Corp (+29.55%), IQVIA Holdings Inc. (+26.80%), Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc. (+20.30%), and Agilent Technologies Inc. (+19.67%).

Within the group, Illumina Inc was the strongest performer at +168.53%, while Agilent Technologies Inc. was the weakest at +19.67%. The remaining peers were mixed, with Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc. up 20.30%, IQVIA Holdings Inc. up 26.80%, and Waters Corp up 29.55%.

DHR Scorecard: Bullish Momentum, Weak Value and Growth

Below is the Benzinga Edge scorecard for Danaher, highlighting its strengths and weaknesses compared to the broader market:

• Momentum: Bullish (Score: 84.36) — The stock is showing strong relative strength, consistent with its position above key moving averages.
• Quality: Neutral (Score: 46.55) — The fundamentals screen as middle-of-the-pack, suggesting the story is more about execution and cycle timing than "can’t-miss" balance-sheet strength.
• Value: Weak (Score: 13.78) — The valuation profile looks expensive versus typical peers, which can make the stock more sensitive to any growth slowdowns.
• Growth: Weak (Score: 21.91) — Growth scoring is on the softer side, so the chart may need continued momentum to keep buyers engaged.

The Verdict: Danaher’s Benzinga Edge signal reveals a momentum-led setup with a premium valuation backdrop. For longer-term bulls, the key is whether price can keep holding above its rising moving averages; for cautious investors, the low Value and Growth scores argue for patience on pullbacks rather than chasing strength.

Top ETF Exposure: EAGL, EQTY, NPFE Hold Meaningful DHR

• Eagle Capital Select Equity ETF (NYSE:EAGL): 4.78% Weight
• Kovitz Core Equity ETF (NYSE:EQTY): 3.74% Weight
• NPF Core Equity ETF (NASDAQ:NPFE): 3.31% Weight

Significance: Because DHR carries significant weight in these funds, any significant inflows or outflows for these ETFs will likely force automatic buying or selling of the stock.

DHR Stock Today: Danaher Trades Higher Monday

DHR Stock Price Activity: Danaher shares are trading higher by 0.71% at $232.14 at the time of publication on Monday, according to Benzinga Pro data.

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