Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Increases Holdings in Fortive Corporation (NYSE:FTV)

Key Points

• Zurcher Kantonalbank increased its holdings in Fortive Corporation by 1.9% during Q1, now owning approximately 340,648 shares valued at about $24.9 million.
• Fortive's stock price is currently around $50.86, with a 1-year low of $49.66 and a high of $83.32, indicating significant volatility over the past year.
• After recently reporting quarterly earnings of $0.85 EPS, Fortive's board initiated a share repurchase plan for up to 15,630,000 shares, suggesting confidence in the company's valuation.

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its stake in Fortive Corporation (NYSE:FTV - Free Report) by 1.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 340,648 shares of the technology company's stock after buying an additional 6,414 shares during the quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank owned approximately 0.10% of Fortive worth $24,929,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Fortive by 11.1% in the first quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 10,793 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $790,000 after acquiring an additional 1,076 shares during the last quarter. Drake & Associates LLC boosted its position in shares of Fortive by 28.7% during the 1st quarter. Drake & Associates LLC now owns 22,298 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $1,632,000 after acquiring an additional 4,978 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Fortive by 13.1% in the 1st quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 51,343 shares of the technology company's stock worth $3,757,000 after purchasing an additional 5,963 shares during the last quarter. Brookstone Capital Management bought a new stake in shares of Fortive in the 1st quarter worth about $3,542,000. Finally, Perpetual Ltd lifted its position in Fortive by 60.0% during the 1st quarter. Perpetual Ltd now owns 239,735 shares of the technology company's stock worth $17,544,000 after buying an additional 89,891 shares in the last quarter. 94.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Fortive news, SVP Peter C. Underwood sold 14,327 shares of the firm's 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 transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 51,750 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,823,290. This trade represents a 21.68% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO James A. Lico sold 175,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the chief executive officer owned 428,585 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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 owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FTV has been the topic of a number of research reports. BNP Paribas restated a "neutral" rating on shares of Fortive in a research report on Thursday, June 12th. 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 note on Wednesday, July 16th. TD Cowen cut shares of Fortive from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $85.00 to $50.00 in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Raymond James Financial dropped their price target on Fortive from $90.00 to $65.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 1st. Finally, Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on Fortive from $88.00 to $82.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Fortive presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $65.86.

Fortive Trading Down 2.9%

FTV traded down $1.39 during trading on Friday, hitting $46.54. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,852,976 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,176,081. Fortive Corporation has a twelve month low of $46.47 and a twelve month high of $83.32. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $61.63 and its 200-day moving average price is $69.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.99, a PEG ratio of 3.08 and a beta of 1.09.

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

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

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.