Fortive Corporation $FTV Stock: Machina Capital S.A.S. Boosts Position

Machina Capital S.A.S. raised its holdings in Fortive Corporation (NYSE:FTV) by 197.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 42,747 shares of the technology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 28,379 shares during the period. Machina Capital S.A.S.’s holdings in Fortive were worth $2,343,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of FTV. Arkadios Wealth Advisors lifted its stake in shares of Fortive by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 9,047 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $500,000 after buying an additional 187 shares in the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. lifted its position in shares of Fortive by 86.8% during the third quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 467 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 217 shares in the last quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Fortive by 2.0% during the second quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 11,127 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $680,000 after acquiring an additional 222 shares in the last quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. lifted its position in shares of Fortive by 4.2% during the first quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. now owns 5,604 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $310,000 after acquiring an additional 224 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA boosted its holdings in shares of Fortive by 59.2% in the first quarter. Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA now owns 702 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 261 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 94.94% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Peter C. Underwood sold 48,442 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.60, for a total transaction of $3,129,353.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 79,118 shares in the company, valued at $5,111,022.80. The trade was a 37.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Christopher Mulhall sold 17,962 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.56, for a total value of $1,177,588.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 44,598 shares in the company, valued at $2,923,844.88. This represents a 28.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 74,497 shares of company stock valued at $4,837,600. 0.65% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Fortive Stock Performance

Fortive stock opened at $67.84 on Thursday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $58.97 and its 200 day simple moving average is $59.14. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.19 billion, a PE ratio of 21.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 1.03. Fortive Corporation has a 1-year low of $50.09 and a 1-year high of $68.94.

Fortive (NYSE:FTV) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The technology company reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.70 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $1.11 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.07 billion. Fortive had a net margin of 14.83% and a return on equity of 15.79%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.68 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Fortive Corporation will post 3.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fortive Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 28th. Investors of record on Friday, November 27th will be paid a dividend of $0.07 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 27th. This represents a $0.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. Fortive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 13.33%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Evercore assumed coverage on Fortive in a research report on Monday, September 28th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $60.00 price target for the company. Argus reissued a “buy” rating and set a $68.00 price objective on shares of Fortive in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. Weiss Ratings raised Fortive from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Thursday, October 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Fortive from $56.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 29th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $75.00 target price on Fortive in a report on Thursday, October 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Fortive has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $64.36.

Fortive Profile

Fortive is a global technology company that develops products and software for industrial, infrastructure and healthcare customers. Its businesses focus on helping organizations improve the safety, reliability and efficiency of their operations. Fortive’s offerings include electronic test and measurement tools, industrial safety and gas-detection systems, and software for managing facilities, assets and construction projects. Its portfolio includes brands such as Fluke, Industrial Scientific, Gordian, Accruent and Provation.