Donaldson (NYSE:DCI) Hits New 12-Month High - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• Shares of Donaldson Company, Inc. (NYSE:DCI) reached a new 52-week high of $84.42 during mid-day trading, closing at $83.74.
• Analysts have varying ratings on Donaldson, with a consensus rating of "Hold" and an increased average price target of $80.33.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.30, which represents an annual yield of 1.4%.

Shares of Donaldson Company, Inc. (NYSE:DCI - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $84.42 and last traded at $83.74, with a volume of 428330 shares. The stock had previously closed at $83.21.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

DCI has been the topic of a number of research reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Donaldson in a research report on Tuesday, October 14th. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on shares of Donaldson from $78.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, August 29th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Donaldson from $69.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 2nd. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Donaldson from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, October 3rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of Donaldson from $69.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, August 28th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $80.33.

Donaldson Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 1.93 and a quick ratio of 1.25. The stock has a market cap of $9.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.45, a P/E/G ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 0.99. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $79.99 and its 200 day simple moving average is $72.53.

Donaldson (NYSE:DCI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 28th. The industrial products company reported $0.57 EPS for the quarter. Donaldson had a net margin of 9.94% and a return on equity of 29.50%. The firm had revenue of $802.50 million during the quarter. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Donaldson Company, Inc. will post 3.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Donaldson Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 27th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 12th were paid a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 12th. Donaldson's dividend payout ratio is presently 39.34%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Donaldson

In other Donaldson news, President Guillermo Briseno sold 13,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $79.03, for a total value of $1,066,905.00. Following the completion of the sale, the president owned 25,309 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,000,170.27. This represents a 34.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Amy C. Becker sold 18,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.71, for a total transaction of $1,511,635.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 44,645 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,647,942.95. This represents a 29.30% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 63,900 shares of company stock valued at $5,129,264. Corporate insiders own 2.20% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Donaldson

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. True Wealth Design LLC increased its stake in Donaldson by 203.7% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 325 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 218 shares during the last quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. acquired a new stake in Donaldson in the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. increased its stake in Donaldson by 5,112.5% in the 2nd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 417 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 409 shares during the last quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. increased its stake in Donaldson by 3,680.0% in the 3rd quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 378 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 368 shares during the last quarter. Finally, NewSquare Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Donaldson in the 2nd quarter valued at $34,000. 82.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Donaldson

Donaldson Company, Inc manufactures and sells filtration systems and replacement parts worldwide. The company operates through three segments: Mobile Solutions, Industrial Solutions, and Life Sciences. Its Mobile Solutions segment provides replacement filters for air and liquid filtration applications, such as air filtration systems; liquid filtration systems for fuel, lube, and hydraulic applications; exhaust and emissions systems and sensors; indicators; and monitoring systems.

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