Prudential PLC Sells 8,673 Shares of Fortive Corporation (NYSE:FTV)

Key Points

• Prudential PLC has reduced its holdings in Fortive Corporation by 5.3% in the first quarter, selling 8,673 shares and now owning 156,061 shares worth approximately $11.4 million.
• CEO James A. Lico recently sold 175,000 shares of Fortive at an average price of $72.40, representing a 28.99% decrease in his ownership.
• Fortive's recent quarterly earnings report showed an EPS of $0.58, missing estimates of $0.60, and a revenue decline of 0.4% year-over-year.

Prudential PLC trimmed its holdings in Fortive Corporation (NYSE:FTV - Free Report) by 5.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 156,061 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 8,673 shares during the quarter. Prudential PLC's holdings in Fortive were worth $11,421,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in FTV. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its stake in shares of Fortive by 97.1% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 5,706 shares of the technology company's stock worth $428,000 after acquiring an additional 2,811 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Fortive during the fourth quarter valued at $22,412,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC raised its position in Fortive by 53.6% during the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 20,608 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $1,546,000 after buying an additional 7,191 shares during the period. Keystone Financial Group acquired a new position in Fortive during the fourth quarter valued at $219,000. Finally, Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan acquired a new position in Fortive during the fourth quarter valued at $377,000. 94.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Fortive Stock Performance

NYSE FTV traded up $0.31 during trading on Friday, hitting $48.11. The company's stock had a trading volume of 5,626,771 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,328,849. 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 50 day moving average price of $56.96 and a 200 day moving average price of $67.58. The firm has a market cap of $16.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 1.08. Fortive Corporation has a 52 week low of $46.34 and a 52 week high of $83.32.

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

Fortive declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, May 27th that permits the company to repurchase 15,630,000 shares. This repurchase authorization permits the technology company to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on FTV. BNP Paribas reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of Fortive in a research report on Thursday, June 12th. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on Fortive from $88.00 to $82.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Mizuho dropped their price target on Fortive from $85.00 to $65.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Truist Financial reiterated a "hold" rating and set a $55.00 price objective (down from $60.00) on shares of Fortive in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Fortive to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 5th. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $65.57.

Fortive Company 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.