Fortive (NYSE:FTV) Shares Gap Down - Should You Sell?

Fortive Corporation (NYSE:FTV - Get Free Report)'s share price gapped down prior to trading on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $53.94, but opened at $52.05. Fortive shares last traded at $50.37, with a volume of 889,493 shares trading hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on FTV. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on shares of Fortive from $88.00 to $82.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of Fortive from $84.00 to $69.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 14th. BNP Paribas restated a "neutral" rating on shares of Fortive in a research note on Thursday, June 12th. Barclays reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $86.00 price target (up from $84.00) on shares of Fortive in a research report on Tuesday, June 3rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Fortive from $87.00 to $65.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $77.08.

Fortive Stock Down 0.6%

The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $69.51 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $73.25. The company has a market cap of $18.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.25, a P/E/G ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

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

Fortive announced 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 often an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fortive

In other Fortive news, SVP Peter C. Underwood sold 14,327 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.88, for a total value of $1,058,478.76. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 51,750 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,823,290. This 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 accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO James A. Lico sold 175,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 428,585 shares in the company, valued at $31,029,554. This represents a 28.99% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.92% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Fortive

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Parvin Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Fortive in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. American National Bank & Trust bought a new position in Fortive in the first quarter worth $26,000. Accent Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Fortive during the first quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of 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 buying an additional 201 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Park Square Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in Fortive in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.94% of the company's stock.

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.