Barclays Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Fortive (NYSE:FTV) Stock

Fortive (NYSE:FTV - Get Free Report) had its target price upped by equities research analysts at Barclays from $84.00 to $86.00 in a research note issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an "overweight" rating on the technology company's stock. Barclays's price objective would suggest a potential upside of 19.53% from the company's previous close.

A number of other brokerages have also weighed in on FTV. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on Fortive from $68.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. BNP Paribas lowered shares of Fortive from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $67.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Fortive from $84.00 to $69.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 14th. Truist Financial decreased their price objective on shares of Fortive from $90.00 to $81.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Fortive from $73.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Fortive presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $82.08.

Fortive Stock Performance

NYSE:FTV traded down $0.19 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $71.95. The stock had a trading volume of 1,991,924 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,602,166. The stock has a market cap of $24.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.49, a P/E/G ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. Fortive has a 12-month low of $60.39 and a 12-month high of $83.32. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $68.87 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $74.62.

Fortive (NYSE:FTV - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The technology company reported $0.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.85. Fortive had a net margin of 13.36% and a return on equity of 13.15%. The firm had revenue of $1.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.49 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.83 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that Fortive will post 4.05 EPS for the current year.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Peter C. Underwood sold 14,327 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 51,750 shares in the company, valued at $3,823,290. This trade represents a 21.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO James A. Lico sold 175,000 shares of Fortive stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 428,585 shares in the company, valued at $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 1.01% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Parvin Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Fortive during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. American National Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in Fortive during the first quarter worth about $26,000. Accent Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Fortive during the first quarter worth about $26,000. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in Fortive by 114.2% in the first quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. now owns 377 shares of the technology company's stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 201 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Park Square Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Fortive in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.94% of the company's stock.

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.