Fortive Co. (NYSE:FTV) Shares Acquired by MJP Associates Inc. ADV

MJP Associates Inc. ADV lifted its stake in Fortive Co. (NYSE:FTV) by 27.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,656 shares of the technology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 995 shares during the period. MJP Associates Inc. ADV’s holdings in Fortive were worth $343,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of FTV. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new position in Fortive in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. PCA Investment Advisory Services Inc. bought a new stake in Fortive during the second quarter valued at $26,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Fortive during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $28,000. First Command Advisory Services Inc. bought a new position in Fortive in the 3rd quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC bought a new stake in Fortive in the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. 94.94% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Fortive Price Performance

NYSE:FTV remained flat at $86.02 during mid-day trading on Thursday. 1,243,047 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,640,806. Fortive Co. has a 12 month low of $62.70 and a 12 month high of $87.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a current ratio of 2.05. The company has a market cap of $30.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.25, a PEG ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 1.13. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $82.18 and its 200-day moving average is $74.99.

Fortive (NYSE:FTV) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The technology company reported $0.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.93 by $0.05. Fortive had a net margin of 14.27% and a return on equity of 12.12%. The firm had revenue of $1.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.56 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.88 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Fortive Co. will post 3.78 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fortive Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 23rd will be issued a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 22nd. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.37%. Fortive’s payout ratio is 13.11%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Fortive news, CEO Tamara S. Newcombe sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.00, for a total value of $425,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 55,017 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,676,445. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, CEO Tamara S. Newcombe sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.00, for a total value of $425,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 55,017 shares in the company, valued at $4,676,445. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Christopher M. Mulhall sold 8,994 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.17, for a total value of $739,036.98. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 20,564 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,689,743.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 63,937 shares of company stock valued at $5,475,122 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.95% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on FTV. Vertical Research lowered shares of Fortive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 2nd. StockNews.com raised shares of Fortive from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Truist Financial assumed coverage on shares of Fortive in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $99.00 price target on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Fortive from $83.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 1st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Fortive from $75.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 1st. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Fortive presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $83.85.

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.