Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. Sells 712,345 Shares of Fortive Corporation $FTV

Key Points

• Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. reduced its holdings in Fortive Corporation by 77.1%, now owning 211,893 shares worth $15.51 million after selling 712,345 shares in the first quarter.
• Fortive's quarterly earnings report indicated an EPS of $0.58, falling short of the consensus estimate by $0.02, with revenue down 0.4% year-over-year.
• The company recently announced a stock repurchase plan authorizing buybacks of up to 15.63 million outstanding shares, signaling confidence in its stock valuation.

Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. reduced its position in Fortive Corporation (NYSE:FTV - Free Report) by 77.1% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 211,893 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 712,345 shares during the quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. owned about 0.06% of Fortive worth $15,506,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec grew its position in Fortive by 6.4% in the first quarter. Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec now owns 14,294 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $1,046,000 after acquiring an additional 861 shares during the last quarter. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC raised its position in Fortive by 14.7% in the first quarter. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 7,598 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $556,000 after purchasing an additional 971 shares during the last quarter. Gates Capital Management Inc. raised its position in Fortive by 6.3% in the first quarter. Gates Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,565,459 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $187,740,000 after purchasing an additional 152,088 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP boosted its stake in shares of Fortive by 92.6% during the first quarter. Quarry LP now owns 965 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $71,000 after purchasing an additional 464 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vident Advisory LLC grew its holdings in shares of Fortive by 215.5% during the first quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 19,376 shares of the technology company's stock worth $1,418,000 after purchasing an additional 13,235 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.94% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Melius lowered shares of Fortive from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $62.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Fortive from $72.00 to $55.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 1st. Barclays set a $54.00 price objective on Fortive and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, August 14th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "equal weight" rating and issued a $50.00 price target (down previously from $90.00) on shares of Fortive in a research report on Tuesday, September 2nd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price objective on Fortive from $58.00 to $56.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and thirteen have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $62.79.

Fortive Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of Fortive stock traded down $0.13 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $47.58. 2,165,620 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,352,808. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.82. Fortive Corporation has a 1-year low of $46.34 and a 1-year high of $83.32. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $49.45 and a 200-day moving average price of $63.40. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.10 billion, a PE ratio of 21.43, a P/E/G ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 1.10.

Fortive (NYSE:FTV - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The technology company reported $0.58 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.60 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $1.52 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.54 billion. Fortive had a net margin of 13.62% and a return on equity of 11.96%. The business's revenue for the quarter was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.93 EPS. Fortive has set its FY 2025 guidance at 2.500-2.600 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Fortive Corporation will post 4.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fortive declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, May 27th that authorizes the company to buyback 15,630,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the technology company to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Fortive Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 12th will be paid a $0.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 12th. This represents a $0.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Fortive's dividend payout ratio is 14.41%.

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.