Fortive Corporation (NYSE:FTV) Shares Bought by KBC Group NV

KBC Group NV boosted its position in shares of Fortive Corporation (NYSE:FTV - Free Report) by 9.5% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 222,783 shares of the technology company's stock after buying an additional 19,357 shares during the period. KBC Group NV owned 0.07% of Fortive worth $16,303,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. increased its position in Fortive by 5.2% during the fourth quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 2,554 shares of the technology company's stock worth $192,000 after buying an additional 127 shares during the period. Tandem Capital Management Corp ADV lifted its holdings in shares of Fortive by 0.6% during the first quarter. Tandem Capital Management Corp ADV now owns 27,557 shares of the technology company's stock worth $2,017,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares during the period. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Fortive by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 13,628 shares of the technology company's stock worth $1,022,000 after purchasing an additional 168 shares during the period. RDA Financial Network lifted its holdings in shares of Fortive by 3.5% during the first quarter. RDA Financial Network now owns 4,965 shares of the technology company's stock worth $363,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares during the period. Finally, Tritonpoint Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Fortive by 3.1% during the first quarter. Tritonpoint Wealth LLC now owns 6,208 shares of the technology company's stock worth $454,000 after purchasing an additional 187 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.94% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Peter C. Underwood sold 14,327 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.88, for a total value of $1,058,478.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 51,750 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,823,290. The trade was a 21.68% decrease in their position. The sale 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 business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.40, for a total transaction of $12,670,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 428,585 shares of the company's stock, valued at $31,029,554. The trade was a 28.99% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.92% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

FTV has been the subject of several recent research reports. Citigroup decreased their price target on Fortive from $84.00 to $69.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 14th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on Fortive from $78.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Monday, June 9th. Barclays reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $86.00 price target (up from $84.00) on shares of Fortive in a report on Tuesday, June 3rd. BNP Paribas reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of Fortive in a report on Thursday, June 12th. Finally, Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on Fortive from $88.00 to $82.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $82.62.

Fortive Price Performance

Fortive stock opened at $52.20 on Tuesday. Fortive Corporation has a one year low of $50.00 and a one year high of $83.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 0.99. The business has a fifty day moving average of $70.04 and a two-hundred day moving average of $73.53. The company has a market cap of $17.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 1.11.

Fortive (NYSE:FTV - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The technology company reported $0.85 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.85. Fortive had a return on equity of 13.19% and a net margin of 12.90%. The business had revenue of $1.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.49 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.83 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Fortive Corporation will post 4.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fortive declared that its Board of Directors has authorized 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 a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Fortive Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 27th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th were given a $0.08 dividend. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.61%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 30th. Fortive's dividend payout ratio is currently 14.04%.

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.

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