iA Global Asset Management Inc. Makes New Investment in Fortive Corporation (NYSE:FTV)

Key Points

• iA Global Asset Management Inc. acquired 24,313 shares of Fortive Corporation in the first quarter, worth approximately $1.78 million.
• Fortive reported $0.58 EPS for the last quarter, missing expectations of $0.60, along with a revenue decline of 0.4% year-over-year.
• The company has initiated a share buyback program for up to 15.63 million outstanding shares, signaling potential undervaluation of its stock.

iA Global Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Fortive Corporation (NYSE:FTV - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 24,313 shares of the technology company's stock, valued at approximately $1,779,000.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Parvin Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Fortive during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. American National Bank & Trust bought a new position in Fortive in the 1st quarter valued at about $26,000. Accent Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Fortive in the 1st quarter valued at about $26,000. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. grew its position in Fortive by 114.2% in the 1st 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Park Square Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Fortive in the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Institutional investors own 94.94% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Mizuho decreased their target price on shares of Fortive from $85.00 to $65.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Raymond James Financial cut their price target on shares of Fortive from $90.00 to $65.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 1st. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Fortive to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, July 5th. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Fortive from $84.00 to $69.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price objective on shares of Fortive from $58.00 to $56.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $65.86.

Fortive Trading Down 0.7%

NYSE FTV traded down $0.34 during trading on Friday, reaching $47.11. 3,774,297 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,338,641. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $58.86 and its 200 day moving average price is $68.40. Fortive Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $46.35 and a fifty-two week high of $83.32. The firm has a market cap of $15.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.08.

Fortive (NYSE:FTV - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The technology company reported $0.58 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.60 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $1.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.54 billion. Fortive had a return on equity of 11.96% and a net margin of 13.62%. The company's revenue was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.93 EPS. Analysts predict that Fortive Corporation will post 4.05 EPS for the current year.

Fortive declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Tuesday, May 27th that authorizes the company to buyback 15,630,000 shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the technology company to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Fortive 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.