Beckman Instruments Inc.: Billionaire George Soros and...

Beckman Instruments Inc.: Billionaire George Soros and his affiliates have raised their stake in the Fullerton company to 9.24% from 7.73%. The investors purchased about 430,000 shares of common stock at $31.14 to $34.31 each between Oct. 10 and Nov. 13, according to a document filed Wednesday with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The stock was purchased by Soros himself, Quantum Industrial Partners and Winston Partners L.P.

The Soros group now holds 2.67 million shares in Beckman Instruments, which develops and manufactures automated systems and supplies used for biological analysis. The stock rose 50 cents a share Wednesday to a record $34.625 in trading on the New York Stock Exchange.