Raymond James Financial Lowers Fortive (NYSE:FTV) Price Target to $65.00

Fortive (NYSE:FTV) had its target price decreased by Raymond James Financial from $90.00 to $65.00 in a research report released on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. Raymond James Financial currently has an outperform rating on the technology company’s stock.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on Fortive from $78.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, June 9th. Truist Financial dropped their price target on Fortive from $90.00 to $81.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on Fortive from $88.00 to $82.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Fortive from $73.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Fortive from $72.00 to $55.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Fortive currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $78.77.

Fortive Stock Performance

NYSE FTV opened at $53.08 on Tuesday. Fortive has a 1-year low of $50.00 and a 1-year high of $83.32. The company has a market capitalization of $18.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.28, a PEG ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 1.02. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $69.78 and a 200 day moving average price of $73.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.99 and a quick ratio of 0.78.

Fortive (NYSE:FTV) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The technology company reported $0.85 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.85. The firm had revenue of $1.47 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.49 billion. Fortive had a return on equity of 13.19% and a net margin of 12.90%. Fortive’s quarterly revenue was down 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.83 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Fortive will post 4.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fortive declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, May 27th that authorizes the company to repurchase 15,630,000 outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the technology company to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Fortive Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 27th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th were given a $0.08 dividend. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.60%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 30th. Fortive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 14.04%.

Insider Activity

In other Fortive news, SVP Peter C. Underwood sold 14,327 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.88, for a total value of $1,058,478.76. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 51,750 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,823,290. This trade represents a 21.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO James A. Lico sold 175,000 shares of Fortive stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.40, for a total value of $12,670,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 428,585 shares in the company, valued at approximately $31,029,554. The trade was a 28.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.92% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Fortive

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Parvin Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Fortive during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. American National Bank & Trust bought a new stake in Fortive in the first quarter valued at about $26,000. Accent Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Fortive in the first quarter valued at about $26,000. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in Fortive by 114.2% in the first quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. now owns 377 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 201 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Park Square Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in Fortive in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. 94.94% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Fortive

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.