⚠ Buying Back Stock With Proceeds Not Yet ReceivedLow threat

Thermo Fisher Scientific (TMO) — threat to the moat

Thermo Fisher spent about $1 billion on buybacks from a business sale that had not yet closed.

In the second quarter of 2026 Thermo Fisher bought back 2,071,838 shares at an average price of $482.661, about $1 billion. It told investors: "We deployed the anticipated net proceeds from this transaction to repurchase $1 billion of our shares in the second quarter"2, the transaction being the sale of its microbiology business.

Share repurchases ($M)2,000H1 20254,000H1 2026Thermo Fisher Form 10-Q Q2 2026
Twice the pace of a year earlier.

That sale was agreed in April and was expected to close in the third quarter3. Spending proceeds before they arrive is borrowing in the meantime.

The amounts are small against the balance sheet. The habit is what matters.

The monthly detail shows the pace. The company bought 1,534,188 shares in May at an average of $478.98 and 537,650 in June at $493.164. At the September close of $675.005, those purchases were worth about 40% more than they cost6, so the timing has so far been good.

The year's buyback budget is already spent. The company guided about $4 billion of repurchases for 20267 and had bought $4,000 million by June8. At 31 July, $1.00 billion remained under the board's authorization9. Any further buybacks this year would go beyond the plan, which makes the funding of the second-quarter purchases the last test of the habit for 2026.

The share count is already falling: 369.75 million shares were outstanding in September 202610, against 378 million diluted shares on average in 202511.

The sign to watch is whether the sale closes on schedule. If it slips, the buyback will have been funded with debt at a time when leverage is already 3.6 times.

References
  1. ReportedIn the second quarter of 2026 Thermo Fisher bought back 2,071,838 shares at an average price of $482.66, about $1 billion.
    Thermo Fisher Scientific Form 10-Q for the quarter ended 27 June 2026 - revenue by business and by type, the Clario purchase price, the microbiology sale, share repurchases, dividends and the balance sheet. — Q2 2026 · publ. 31 July 2026 · source ↗
  2. ReportedIt told investors: "We deployed the anticipated net proceeds from this transaction to repurchase $1 billion of our shares in the second quarter", the transaction being the sale of its microbiology business.
    Thermo Fisher Scientific second-quarter 2026 earnings call transcript (Motley Fool) - organic growth by segment and market, China, the raised 2026 guidance, leverage, adjusted ROIC and the microbiology sale. Figures from the transcript body, not the summary block - 2026 guidance, capital deployment, leverage and adjusted ROIC. — Q2 2026 · publ. 23 July 2026 · source ↗
  3. ReportedThat sale was agreed in April and was expected to close in the third quarter.
    Thermo Fisher Scientific Form 10-Q for the quarter ended 27 June 2026 - revenue by business and by type, the Clario purchase price, the microbiology sale, share repurchases, dividends and the balance sheet. — Q2 2026 · publ. 31 July 2026 · source ↗
  4. ReportedThe company bought 1,534,188 shares in May at an average of $478.98 and 537,650 in June at $493.16.
    Thermo Fisher Scientific Form 10-Q for the quarter ended 27 June 2026 - revenue by business and by type, the Clario purchase price, the microbiology sale, share repurchases, dividends and the balance sheet. — Q2 2026 · publ. 31 July 2026 · source ↗
  5. ReportedAt the September close of $675.00, those purchases were worth about 40% more than they cost, so the timing has so far been good.
    Thermo Fisher (TMO) market data - $675.00 at the close on 25 September 2026, market cap $249.58B, dividend $1.88, 52-week range $435.27-$682.98, 29 analysts with a $649.96 target. — September 2026 · publ. 25 September 2026 · source ↗
  6. Moat Explorer calcAt the September close of $675.00, those purchases were worth about 40% more than they cost, so the timing has so far been good.
    Moat Explorer calculation from Thermo Fisher's reported financial statements, results releases, earnings calls and market data ($ millions unless stated). Revenue by type: consumables + services share (18,664 + 18,592) / 44,556 = 83.6% (2025); (12,576 + 5,490) / 24,358 = 74.2% (2018); (13,109 + 6,046) / 25,542 = 75.0% (2019); (18,527 + 6,912) / 32,218 = 79.0% (2020); (22,608 + 8,850) / 39,211 = 80.2% (2021); (20,624 + 16,367) / 44,915 = 82.4% (2022); (17,597 + 17,614) / 42,857 = 82.2% (2023); (17,587 + 17,845) / 42,879 = 82.6% (2024); H1 2026 (9,794 + 9,899) / 22,999 = 85.6%. Instruments 7,301 / 7,924 - 1 = -7.9% (2022-2025), a fall of 623. Consumables 18,664 / 17,587 - 1 = 6.1%. Services 18,592 / 17,845 - 1 = 4.2%. Gross margin by type 2025: products (25,965 - 13,405) / 25,965 = 48.4%; services (18,592 - 12,913) / 18,592 = 30.5%; total (44,556 - 13,405 - 12,913) / 44,556 = 40.9%. Businesses: BioProduction 2,652 / 2,923 - 1 = -9.3% (2024), 3,200 / 2,652 - 1 = 20.7% (2025), Q2 2026 941 / 745 - 1 = 26.3%. Biosciences 4,169 / 4,238 - 1 = -1.6%. Transplant 492 / 393 - 1 = 25.2%, Q2 134 / 124 - 1 = 8.1%. ImmunoDiagnostics 912 / 802 - 1 = 13.7%, Q2 248 / 234 - 1 = 6.0%. Clinical diagnostics 1,115 / 1,104 - 1 = 1.0%. Microbiology 645 / 618 - 1 = 4.4% (about 2.2% a year); sale price 1,075 / 645 = 1.7 times; microbiology / Specialty Diagnostics 645 / 4,676 = 13.8%. Research and safety channel 7,440 / 6,841 - 1 = 8.8%, Q2 2,036 / 1,883 - 1 = 8.1%, 7,440 - 6,841 = 599. Healthcare channel 1,788 / 1,712 - 1 = 4.4%, 1,788 / 1,764 - 1 = 1.4% (2025), Q2 442 / 407 - 1 = 8.6%. Laboratory products 2,407 / 2,613 - 1 = -7.9%. Channels (7,440 + 1,788) / 44,556 = 9,228 / 44,556 = 20.7%. Revenue growth: 44,556 / 42,879 - 1 = 3.9% (2025), increase 44,556 - 42,879 = 1,677; 44,556 / 42,857 - 1 = 4.0% (2023-2025); 44,556 / 16,965 = 2.6 times (2015-2025). Research channel share of the increase 422 / 1,677 = 25%. Eliminations / revenue 633 / 16,965 = 3.7% (2015), 2,033 / 44,556 = 4.6% (2025). Life Sciences Solutions sold to other segments 1,593 / 10,374 = 15.4%; external revenue 8,781 / 8,160 - 1 = 7.6%. Pharma services 7,142 / 6,685 - 1 = 6.8%; clinical research 7,915 / 7,836 - 1 = 1.0%; Q2 2026 clinical research 2,396 / 1,955 - 1 = 22.6%. Clinical research + pharma services 7,915 + 7,142 = 15,057, / 44,556 = 33.8% (2025); (7,836 + 6,685) / 42,879 = 33.9% (2024); (7,691 + 6,806) / 42,857 = 33.8% (2023); Q2 2026 2,396 + 1,893 = 4,289, / 11,994 = 35.8%; Q2 2025 1,955 + 1,794 = 3,749. Patheon + PPD + Clario 7,358 + 16,036 + 9,098 = 32,492. Clario price / 2025 revenue 9,098 / 1,500 = 6.1 times; 9,098 / 1,250 = 7.3 times; goodwill 5,934 / 9,098 = 65%. Filtration 3,870 / 750 = 5.2 times. LPBS capital expenditure 1,005 / 1,525 = 65.9%. Revenue per employee 32,218 / 80,000 = about $403,000 (2020); 44,556 / 125,000 = about $356,000 (2025); 356 / 403 - 1 = -12%. Remaining performance obligations 24.61 / 28.30 - 1 = -13.0% (2021-2024); 29.70 / 46.336 = 64% of trailing revenue. 2019 backlog 4,577 / 7,768 = 59%. Trailing twelve months to June 2026: revenue 44,556 - 21,219 + 22,999 = 46,336; net income 6,704 - 3,124 + 3,387 = 6,967. COVID: Life Sciences Solutions segment income 3,420 / 7,817 - 1 = -56%; testing 0.33 / 7.26 = 4.5% remaining. Tax rate 547 / 7,308 = 7.5% (2025); 657 / 7,037 = 9.3% (2024); 284 / 6,298 = 4.5% (2023). R&D 1,397 / 44,556 = 3.1%. Adjusted less GAAP EPS 22.87 - 17.74 = 5.13. Acquisitions booked since 2021: PPD 16,036 + PeproTech 1,864 + European viral vector 830 + Mesa Biotech 472 + The Binding Site 2,699 + CorEvitas 910 + Olink 3,146 + filtration and separation 3,870 + Clario 9,098 = 38,925. Goodwill and intangibles / total assets (54,832 + 18,606) / 113,174 = 73,438 / 113,174 = 65% (June 2026); (49,362 + 15,838) / 110,343 = 59% (end 2025). Genetic sciences 2,870 / 2,787 - 1 = 3.0%. Analytical Instruments 7,554 / 63,400 = 11.9% of the MarketsandMarkets estimate; revenue 7,463 / 7,263 - 1 = 2.8% (2024), 7,554 / 7,463 - 1 = 1.2% (2025), Q2 1,847 / 1,728 - 1 = 6.9%. Market value against Danaher 249.58 / 157.81 - 1 = 58%. China share of revenue 2,060 / 20,918 = 9.8% (2017), 2,752 / 25,542 = 10.8% (2019), 3,444 / 39,211 = 8.8% (2021), 3,793 / 44,915 = 8.4% (2022). Year-end P/E = market value / net income: 56.61 / 1.975 = 28.7 (2015), 55.74 / 2.022 = 27.6 (2016), 76.14 / 2.225 = 34.2 (2017), 90.09 / 2.938 = 30.7 (2018), 130.27 / 3.696 = 35.2 (2019), 184.61 / 6.375 = 29.0 (2020), 262.92 / 7.725 = 34.0 (2021), 215.98 / 6.950 = 31.1 (2022), 205.08 / 5.995 = 34.2 (2023), 198.99 / 6.335 = 31.4 (2024), 217.70 / 6.704 = 32.5 (2025), trailing 249.58 / 6.967 = 35.8. Segment margins = segment income / segment revenue: Life Sciences Solutions 1,414 / 4,774 = 29.6% (2015), 2,446 / 6,856 = 35.7% (2019), 7,817 / 15,631 = 50.0% (2021), 3,420 / 9,977 = 34.3% (2023), 3,503 / 9,631 = 36.4% (2024); Analytical Instruments 613 / 3,208 = 19.1% (2015), 1,027 / 4,821 = 21.3% (2017), 1,273 / 5,522 = 23.1% (2019), 808 / 5,124 = 15.8% (2020), 1,908 / 7,263 = 26.3% (2023); Specialty Diagnostics 873 / 3,244 = 26.9% (2015), 1,024 / 4,763 = 21.5% (2022); LPBS 922 / 6,372 = 14.5% (2015), 1,271 / 12,245 = 10.4% (2020), 1,844 / 14,862 = 12.4% (2021), 2,872 / 22,511 = 12.8% (2022), 3,358 / 23,041 = 14.6% (2023), 3,090 / 23,157 = 13.3% (2024). Segment shares 2025: Life Sciences Solutions income 3,768 / 10,109 = 37.3%, revenue 10,374 / 46,589 = 22.3%; LPBS external revenue 23,818 / 44,556 = 53.5%. Combined segment margin 10,109 / (44,556 + 2,033) = 10,109 / 46,589 = 21.7%. Segment growth: Life Sciences Solutions 10,374 / 9,631 - 1 = 7.7% (2025), Q2 2026 2,815 / 2,499 - 1 = 12.6%; Specialty Diagnostics 4,676 / 4,512 - 1 = 3.6% (2025), Q2 1,205 / 1,134 - 1 = 6.3%; LPBS 23,984 / 23,157 - 1 = 3.6% (2025), Q2 6,693 / 5,995 - 1 = 11.6%. Ten-year compound growth 2015-2025: Life Sciences Solutions (10,374 / 4,774)^(1/10) - 1 = 8.1%; Specialty Diagnostics (4,676 / 3,244)^(1/10) - 1 = 3.7%; LPBS (23,984 / 6,372)^(1/10) - 1 = 14.2%. Additional: return on equity 6,704 / ((53,407 + 49,584) / 2) = 13.0% (2025). Instruments share 6,292 / 24,358 = 25.8% (2018), 3,305 / 22,999 = 14.4% (H1 2026). Life Sciences Solutions segment income Q2 1,041 / 919 - 1 = 13.3%. Services share 2,297 / 16,965 = 13.5% (2015), 18,592 / 44,556 = 41.7% (2025). Service gross margin (17,614 - 12,589) / 17,614 = 28.5% (2023), (17,845 - 12,654) / 17,845 = 29.1% (2024); product (25,034 - 12,523) / 25,034 = 50.0% (2024). LPBS growth 23,984 - 23,157 = 827 = 457 + 422 - 118 (laboratory products) + 79 (clinical research) - 13 (eliminations). Eliminations 3,010 / 39,211 = 7.7% (2021). Europe 11,826 / 10,741 - 1 = 10.1%; North America 23,033 / 22,764 - 1 = 1.2% (2023-2025). Headcount 125,000 / 122,000 - 1 = 2.5%. Electron microscopy 2,957 / 2,564 - 1 = 15.3%. Net debt end 2025 39,380 - 9,852 - 253 = 29,275. Goodwill added 54,832 - 45,853 = 8,979 (end 2024 to June 2026). Specialty Diagnostics best annual margin 910 / 3,339 = 27.3% (2016). Intersegment shares 2025: 201 / 7,554 = 2.7%, 72 / 4,676 = 1.5%, 167 / 23,984 = 0.7%. COVID response less testing 2021: 9.23 - 7.26 = 1.97 billion. Buyback gain 675.00 / 482.66 - 1 = 40%. Olink goodwill 2,301 / 3,146 = 73%. Life Sciences acquisitions 1,342 + 1,864 + 3,146 + 3,870 = 10,222; segment revenue 10,374 - 4,774 = 5,600. Instrumentation market (92.53 / 63.4)^(1/6) - 1 = 6.5%. Healthcare channel 1,788 / 4,676 = 38%. LPBS segment income Q2 936 / 825 - 1 = 13.5%. Interest cover 7,746 / 1,419 = 5.5 times. EPS 17.74 / 4.92 = 3.6 times. One-point price cut 7,440 x 1% = 74, / 3,350 = 2.2%. Laboratory products 2,407 - 2,525 = -118. Clinical diagnostics Q2 290 / 276 - 1 = 5.1%. Revenue 44,556 - 32,218 = 12,338 (2020-2025). Healthcare channel 1,764 / 1,712 - 1 = 3.0% (2024). Tax at 11.5% instead of 7.5%: 7,308 x 4% = 292. Microbiology Q2 166 / 159 - 1 = 4.4%. Pharma services 6,685 / 6,806 - 1 = -1.8% (2024). Clinical diagnostics 1,115 / 4,676 = 23.8%. Revenue per employee 20,918 / 70,000 = about $299,000 (2017); 25,542 / 75,000 = about $341,000 (2019). Research and safety channel 7,019 / 6,841 - 1 = 2.6% (2024), 7,440 / 7,019 - 1 = 6.0% (2025). Backlog 7,768 / 5,087 - 1 = 52.7% (2019). Restructuring 362 / 7,746 = 4.7%. Laboratory products Q2 608 / 601 - 1 = 1.2%. Services 18,592 / 17,614 - 1 = 5.6%, cost of services 12,913 / 12,589 - 1 = 2.6% (2023-2025). Life Sciences Solutions internal share (9,977 - 8,545) / 9,977 = 14.4% (2023). Biosciences 4,169 / 10,374 = 40.2%. COVID share 6.63 / 32.218 = 20.6% (2020), 9.23 / 39.211 = 23.5% (2021). R&D 1,397 / 1,337 - 1 = 4.5%. Segment income / total assets 10,109 / 110,343 = 9.2%. ImmunoDiagnostics 912 - 802 = 110; clinical diagnostics 1,115 - 1,104 = 11. Restructuring 459 / 6,859 = 6.7% (2023). Microbiology 645 / 44,556 = 1.4%. Laboratory products 2,613 / 23,041 = 11.3% (2023), 2,407 / 23,984 = 10.0% (2025). Clario 0.45 x 371.5 = about 167, / 9,098 = 1.8%. LPBS capex / segment income 1,005 / 3,350 = 30%; Life Sciences Solutions 152 / 3,768 = 4.0%. Equity / assets 52,686 / 113,174 = 46.6%. Clinical research 7,915 / 44,556 = 17.8%. Eliminations Q2 565 / 501 - 1 = 12.8%. Instruments 7,301 / 6,292 - 1 = 16.0%. Revenue per employee 18,274 / 55,000 = about $332,000 (2016). Healthcare channel 1,788 / 44,556 = 4.0%. China 2,797 / 32,218 = 8.7% (2020). RPO 29.70 - 27.92 = 1.78 billion - acquisitions, capital and valuation. — 2015-2026 · publ. September 2026 · source ↗
    Method: Arithmetic on figures reported in Thermo Fisher's Forms 10-K and 10-Q, results releases, earnings calls, MarketsandMarkets and market data; operands shown in the source line.
  7. ReportedThe company guided about $4 billion of repurchases for 2026 and had bought $4,000 million by June.
    Thermo Fisher Scientific second-quarter 2026 earnings call transcript (Motley Fool) - organic growth by segment and market, China, the raised 2026 guidance, leverage, adjusted ROIC and the microbiology sale. Figures from the transcript body, not the summary block - 2026 guidance, capital deployment, leverage and adjusted ROIC. — Q2 2026 · publ. 23 July 2026 · source ↗
  8. ReportedThe company guided about $4 billion of repurchases for 2026 and had bought $4,000 million by June.
    Thermo Fisher Scientific Form 10-Q for the quarter ended 27 June 2026 - revenue by business and by type, the Clario purchase price, the microbiology sale, share repurchases, dividends and the balance sheet. — Q2 2026 · publ. 31 July 2026 · source ↗
  9. ReportedAt 31 July, $1.00 billion remained under the board's authorization.
    Thermo Fisher Scientific Form 10-Q for the quarter ended 27 June 2026 - revenue by business and by type, the Clario purchase price, the microbiology sale, share repurchases, dividends and the balance sheet. — Q2 2026 · publ. 31 July 2026 · source ↗
  10. ReportedThe share count is already falling: 369.75 million shares were outstanding in September 2026, against 378 million diluted shares on average in 2025.
    Thermo Fisher (TMO) statistics - trailing P/E 36.32, forward P/E 25.69, P/S 5.39, 369.75 million shares, institutions 92.99%, 52-week change +44.23%. — September 2026 · publ. 25 September 2026 · source ↗
  11. ReportedThe share count is already falling: 369.75 million shares were outstanding in September 2026, against 378 million diluted shares on average in 2025.
    Thermo Fisher Scientific Form 10-K for fiscal 2025 - financial statements: income, cash flow, repurchases, debt and equity. — FY2025 · publ. 26 February 2026 · source ↗
Sources
Generated September 28, 2026