Simplicity Solutions LLC Increases Stock Position in Dover Co. (NYSE:DOV)

Simplicity Solutions LLC grew its stake in Dover Co. (NYSE:DOV) by 32.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 3,777 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 915 shares during the period. Simplicity Solutions LLC’s holdings in Dover were worth $581,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Dover in the fourth quarter valued at $167,153,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its position in Dover by 112.1% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,902,351 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $257,597,000 after acquiring an additional 1,005,470 shares in the last quarter. CI Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Dover during the fourth quarter worth about $126,175,000. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. lifted its position in shares of Dover by 160.2% during the third quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 1,428,710 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $199,319,000 after purchasing an additional 879,533 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in shares of Dover by 2,173.8% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 817,125 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $113,997,000 after purchasing an additional 781,189 shares during the period. 84.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Dover Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of Dover stock opened at $169.50 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $23.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.54, a PEG ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 1.27. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $170.06 and a two-hundred day moving average of $152.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 1.40. Dover Co. has a one year low of $127.25 and a one year high of $178.28.

Dover (NYSE:DOV) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 1st. The industrial products company reported $2.45 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.44 by $0.01. Dover had a net margin of 12.52% and a return on equity of 25.95%. The firm had revenue of $2.11 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.16 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.16 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Dover Co. will post 9.06 earnings per share for the current year.

Dover Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 29th were paid a dividend of $0.51 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 28th. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.20%. Dover’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.13%.

Insider Activity

In other Dover news, CFO Brad M. Cerepak sold 18,410 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.01, for a total transaction of $3,001,014.10. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 23,909 shares in the company, valued at $3,897,406.09. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, CFO Brad M. Cerepak sold 18,410 shares of Dover stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.01, for a total transaction of $3,001,014.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 23,909 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,897,406.09. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Stephen M. Todd sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.19, for a total transaction of $256,785.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 22,955 shares in the company, valued at $3,929,666.45. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 25,910 shares of company stock worth $4,318,059 in the last 90 days. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

DOV has been the topic of several recent research reports. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of Dover from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. StockNews.com lowered Dover from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Dover from $146.00 to $153.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Citigroup upped their price target on Dover from $180.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 8th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on Dover from $163.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $173.88.

About Dover

Dover Corporation provides equipment and components, consumable supplies, aftermarket parts, software and digital solutions, and support services worldwide. The company's Engineered Products segment provides various equipment, component, software, solution, and services that are used in vehicle aftermarket, waste handling, industrial automation, aerospace and defense, industrial winch and hoist, and fluid dispensing end-market.