Blair William & Co. IL Lowers Stake in Fortive Corporation (NYSE:FTV)

Key Points

• Blair William & Co. IL has reduced its stake in Fortive Corporation by 11.4%, now holding approximately 0.08% of the company valued at $20.99 million after selling 37,084 shares.
• Fortive's stock is currently down 2.8%, with analysts reporting a missed earnings estimate of $0.58 EPS compared to the consensus estimate of $0.60.
• The company has authorized a stock buyback program for up to 15.63 million shares, indicating that the Board believes the stock is undervalued.

Blair William & Co. IL cut its holdings in shares of Fortive Corporation (NYSE:FTV - Free Report) by 11.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 286,895 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 37,084 shares during the period. Blair William & Co. IL owned approximately 0.08% of Fortive worth $20,995,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Parvin Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Fortive during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. American National Bank & Trust acquired a new position in shares of Fortive during the 1st quarter worth approximately $26,000. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Fortive by 114.2% during 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. Park Square Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Fortive during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Quarry LP grew its stake in Fortive by 229.6% in the 4th quarter. Quarry LP now owns 501 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 349 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.94% of the company's stock.

Fortive Stock Down 2.8%

NYSE FTV opened at $46.59 on Monday. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $61.17 and its 200-day simple moving average is $69.44. 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 firm has a market cap of $15.76 billion, a PE ratio of 20.99, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 1.08. Fortive Corporation has a 52 week low of $46.47 and a 52 week high of $83.32.

Fortive (NYSE:FTV - Get Free Report) last issued its 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 firm had revenue of $1.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.54 billion. Fortive had a return on equity of 11.96% and a net margin of 13.62%. Fortive's revenue for the quarter was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.93 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Fortive Corporation will post 4.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Fortive declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Tuesday, May 27th that authorizes the company to buyback 15,630,000 shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the technology company to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on FTV shares. Cowen cut shares of Fortive from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Raymond James Financial reduced their price target on shares of Fortive from $90.00 to $65.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. Melius Research upgraded Fortive to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Citigroup reduced their target price on Fortive from $84.00 to $69.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Fortive from $72.00 to $55.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Fortive currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $65.86.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Peter C. Underwood sold 14,327 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on 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 owned 51,750 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,823,290. This represents a 21.68% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO James A. Lico sold 175,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the chief executive officer owned 428,585 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $31,029,554. This represents a 28.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.92% of the company's stock.

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.

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