Thermo Fisher Scientific poised to rebound

Thermo Fisher Scientific (NYSE:TMO) manufactures and distributes scientific instruments and laboratory supplies, serving more than 350,000 customers in the life and health science industries. The company was formed in November 2006, when Thermo Electron acquired Fisher Scientific International.

The firm pleased investors last month, when it guided Q4 EPS to 52-54 cents (53 cent consensus), FY06 EPS to $1.83-$1.86 ($1.80 consensus), FY07 EPS to $2.35-$2.45 ($2.36 consensus) and FY07 revenues to $9.4-$9.5 billion ($9.32B consensus). Deutsche Securities and UBS subsequently reiterated their "buy" recommendations and boosted their price targets to the $56-$58 range.

The news kept TMO shares cycling through a positive eleven-week trading channel. The price is currently consolidating at the base of that channel, where oversold Momentum, Stochastic and MACD technical parameters suggest the potential for a rise back toward the top. Correspondence of the stock's 30-day moving average to the base of the channel backs the rebound notion.

Altogether, brokers recommend the issue with four "strong buys" and seven "buys." The TMO Price to Book ratio (2.56), Operating Margin (10.60%) and Revenue per Employee ($249k) compare favorably with industry averages. The stock is one of those used to calculate the S&P 500 Index. Institutions hold about 37 percent of the outstanding shares.

Over the past twelve months, the issue has traded between $30.27 and $46.34. A stop-loss of $39.35 looks good here. Note that the company will discuss its expectations for future performance tomorrow morning, at the JPMorgan Healthcare Conference. Note, too, that it is expected to report Q4 results at the end of January.

Larry Schutts is a contributing editor for Theflyonthewall.com and the Vice-President of Stockwinners.com.