Citigroup Issues Positive Forecast for Vontier (NYSE:VNT) Stock Price

Vontier (NYSE:VNT) had its target price raised by Citigroup from $44.00 to $47.00 in a report released on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the stock.

A number of other research firms have also recently weighed in on VNT. Wolfe Research reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $43.00 price objective on shares of Vontier in a report on Thursday, July 9th. KeyCorp upped their target price on shares of Vontier from $40.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Vontier from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Friday, September 4th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $39.00 target price on shares of Vontier in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Vontier currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $41.86.

Vontier Stock Up 5.5%

NYSE VNT traded up $2.18 on Friday, hitting $42.08. 4,229,803 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,213,586. The company has a quick ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $33.20 and a 200-day moving average price of $33.80. The company has a market cap of $5.69 billion, a PE ratio of 17.25, a PEG ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.13. Vontier has a fifty-two week low of $27.25 and a fifty-two week high of $48.20.

Vontier (NYSE:VNT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 5th. The company reported $0.92 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.84 by $0.08. Vontier had a return on equity of 38.57% and a net margin of 11.34%. The company had revenue of $736.90 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $727.98 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.78 earnings per share. Vontier’s quarterly revenue was down 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Vontier will post 3.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vontier Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.0250 per share. This represents a $0.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, September 3rd. Vontier’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 4.15%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vontier

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VNT. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Vontier during the second quarter worth approximately $388,315,000. Corient Private Wealth LP acquired a new stake in Vontier during the 2nd quarter worth $65,037,000. Heron Bay Capital Management acquired a new stake in Vontier during the 2nd quarter worth $55,830,000. Jupiter Topco LLC purchased a new position in Vontier during the 2nd quarter worth $41,904,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new position in Vontier during the 2nd quarter worth $30,220,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.83% of the company’s stock.

Key Vontier News

Here are the key news stories impacting Vontier this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Vontier reported third-quarter EPS of $0.92, beating the $0.84 consensus, and revenue of $736.9 million, above estimates of $728.0 million. Coverage also highlighted margin expansion and cost savings; the company raised its full-year guidance. Vontier Q3 results
• Positive Sentiment: Citigroup raised its price target to $47 from $44 and assigned a Buy rating, while KeyCorp lifted its target to $43 from $40 and maintained an Overweight rating. The upgrades may reinforce investor confidence after the earnings beat.
• Positive Sentiment: The company declared its regular dividend, continuing shareholder returns. Vontier declares regular dividend
• Neutral Sentiment: Despite the earnings beat, revenue declined 2.1% year over year. A Q3 analysis pointed to margin improvement but a cautious demand outlook, suggesting growth may remain a concern. Q3 analysis
• Negative Sentiment: A separate valuation analysis said VNT could be about 7% overvalued, which may limit further upside even after the raised guidance. Vontier valuation analysis

About Vontier

Vontier Corporation (NYSE:VNT) is a global industrial technology company that develops and provides solutions for the mobility, transportation and connected infrastructure markets. Its products and services help businesses manage fueling, fleet operations, vehicle maintenance, repair and diagnostics, and related workflows.

Vontier’s portfolio includes technologies for retail and commercial fueling, fuel measurement and environmental compliance, fleet tracking and telematics, automotive repair equipment, diagnostic tools and aftermarket services.