Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Has $4.54 Million Stake in Fortive Co. (NYSE:FTV)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. trimmed its holdings in Fortive Co. (NYSE:FTV) by 55.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 61,613 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 75,181 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in Fortive were worth $4,536,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in shares of Fortive during the third quarter worth about $25,000. PCA Investment Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Fortive during the second quarter worth about $26,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Fortive during the third quarter worth about $28,000. First Command Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Fortive during the third quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC acquired a new position in shares of Fortive during the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. 94.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently issued reports on FTV shares. Mizuho upped their target price on Fortive from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 1st. Barclays upped their target price on Fortive from $89.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered Fortive from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $95.00 to $90.00 in a report on Wednesday. StockNews.com upgraded Fortive from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 26th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Fortive from $75.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 1st. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $86.54.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Charles E. Mclaughlin sold 40,837 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $86.28, for a total transaction of $3,523,416.36. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 61,855 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,336,849.40. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other Fortive news, SVP Stacey A. Walker sold 9,106 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $86.50, for a total value of $787,669.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 36,558 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,162,267. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Charles E. Mclaughlin sold 40,837 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $86.28, for a total value of $3,523,416.36. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 61,855 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,336,849.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 63,937 shares of company stock valued at $5,475,122 over the last 90 days. 0.95% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Fortive Price Performance

Shares of NYSE FTV opened at $79.49 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $27.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a current ratio of 2.05, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. Fortive Co. has a 1-year low of $62.70 and a 1-year high of $87.10. The business’s 50 day moving average is $84.41 and its 200-day moving average is $76.02.

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

Fortive Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Investors of record on Friday, May 31st will be given a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.40%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 31st. Fortive’s dividend payout ratio is currently 13.11%.

Fortive Company 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.