Fortive Co. (NYSE:FTV) Holdings Lifted by ProShare Advisors LLC

ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Fortive Co. (NYSE:FTV) by 44.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 70,503 shares of the technology company’s stock after buying an additional 21,824 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC’s holdings in Fortive were worth $5,288,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. increased its holdings in shares of Fortive by 5.2% in the 4th quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 2,554 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $192,000 after purchasing an additional 127 shares during the period. Dynasty Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Fortive by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Dynasty Wealth Management LLC now owns 14,436 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,083,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Fortive by 13.4% in the 4th quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 1,400 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $105,000 after buying an additional 165 shares during the period. Webster Bank N. A. lifted its position in Fortive by 6.6% in the 4th quarter. Webster Bank N. A. now owns 2,696 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $202,000 after buying an additional 168 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Fortive by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 13,628 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,022,000 after buying an additional 168 shares during the period. 94.94% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Fortive Stock Up 1.1%

FTV opened at $73.26 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $24.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.16. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $69.77 and a 200 day moving average price of $74.89. Fortive Co. has a twelve month low of $60.39 and a twelve month high of $83.32.

Fortive (NYSE:FTV) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The technology company reported $0.85 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.85. The company had revenue of $1.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.49 billion. Fortive had a net margin of 13.36% and a return on equity of 13.15%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.83 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Fortive Co. will post 4.05 EPS for the current year.

Fortive Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 27th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be given a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.44%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 30th. Fortive’s dividend payout ratio is 14.04%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fortive

In other Fortive news, CEO James A. Lico sold 175,000 shares of Fortive stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.40, for a total value of $12,670,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 428,585 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $31,029,554. The trade was a 28.99% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Stacey A. Walker sold 5,688 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.52, for a total transaction of $457,997.76. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 47,141 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,795,793.32. The trade was a 10.77% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 432,712 shares of company stock worth $33,237,008 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.01% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Fortive from $73.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday. Barclays lowered their target price on Fortive from $85.00 to $84.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on Fortive from $88.00 to $82.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. StockNews.com lowered Fortive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Fortive from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $81.92.

Fortive Profile

Fortive Corporation designs, develops, manufactures, and services professional and engineered products, software, and services in the United States, China, and internationally. It operates in three segments: Intelligent Operating Solutions, Precision Technologies, and Advanced Healthcare Solutions. The Intelligent Operating Solutions segment provides advanced instrumentation, software, and services, including electrical test and measurement, facility and asset lifecycle software applications, and connected worker safety and compliance solutions for manufacturing, process industries, healthcare, utilities and power, communications and electronics, and other industries.