River Road Asset Management LLC Increases Holdings in Vontier Corporation $VNT

Key Points

• River Road Asset Management increased its Vontier stake by 6.7% in Q4, buying 206,157 shares and bringing its total holdings to 3,298,671 shares valued at about $122.6 million.
• Vontier shares rose 3.2% and were trading around $29.97, well below the stock’s 52-week high of $48.20. The company currently has a market cap of about $4.22 billion.
• Vontier reported quarterly EPS of $0.80, slightly missing estimates, while revenue came in above expectations at $750.6 million. The company also authorized a $1 billion share repurchase program and declared a quarterly dividend of $0.025 per share.

River Road Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Vontier Corporation (NYSE:VNT - Free Report) by 6.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,298,671 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 206,157 shares during the period. Vontier makes up about 1.3% of River Road Asset Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest holding. River Road Asset Management LLC owned approximately 2.33% of Vontier worth $122,645,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VNT. Boston Partners acquired a new position in shares of Vontier during the fourth quarter worth about $132,438,000. Corient Private Wealth LLC boosted its position in shares of Vontier by 104.6% in the second quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 4,793,944 shares of the company's stock worth $176,897,000 after buying an additional 2,450,723 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in shares of Vontier by 85.0% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 5,225,596 shares of the company's stock valued at $219,318,000 after buying an additional 2,401,220 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Vontier by 4,958.3% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,151,517 shares of the company's stock valued at $90,299,000 after buying an additional 2,108,983 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Vontier in the fourth quarter valued at about $68,526,000. 95.83% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Vontier Stock Up 3.2%

Shares of NYSE VNT opened at $29.97 on Friday. Vontier Corporation has a 1 year low of $27.25 and a 1 year high of $48.20. The firm has a market cap of $4.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.59, a PEG ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 1.23. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $31.79 and its 200-day simple moving average is $35.82.

Vontier (NYSE:VNT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.82 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $750.60 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $737.21 million. Vontier had a return on equity of 37.88% and a net margin of 13.37%.The company's revenue was up 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.77 EPS. Vontier has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.350-3.500 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.780-0.810 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Vontier Corporation will post 3.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Vontier declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Tuesday, May 19th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 25.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Vontier Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 25th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 4th will be given a dividend of $0.025 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 4th. This represents a $0.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. Vontier's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 3.53%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. Argus lowered Vontier from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Vontier from $50.00 to $44.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Vontier from $50.00 to $45.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Evercore set a $36.00 target price on shares of Vontier in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Vontier from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 9th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Vontier currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $42.38.

About Vontier

Vontier is a global industrial technology company focused on advancing mobility infrastructure and transportation solutions. Established as a standalone public company in October 2020 through the spin-off of Fortive’s mobility and transportation platforms, Vontier is headquartered in Raleigh, North Carolina. The company’s mission centers on delivering innovative products and services that help customers meet evolving demands in fuel retail, fleet management, and automotive service.

The company’s diversified portfolio spans several well-known brands.

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