Franklin Resources Inc. Cuts Holdings in Donaldson Company, Inc. (NYSE:DCI)

Franklin Resources Inc. cut its stake in shares of Donaldson Company, Inc. (NYSE:DCI - Free Report) by 94.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 162,349 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 2,819,390 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. owned about 0.14% of Donaldson worth $10,934,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in DCI. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Donaldson during the fourth quarter worth $65,828,000. Scharf Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Donaldson during the fourth quarter valued at $61,697,000. Dudley & Shanley Inc. boosted its position in Donaldson by 5,118.4% during the fourth quarter. Dudley & Shanley Inc. now owns 268,750 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $18,100,000 after purchasing an additional 263,600 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB purchased a new position in shares of Donaldson during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $17,471,000. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Donaldson in the 4th quarter worth $13,865,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.81% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Donaldson news, Director James Owens sold 18,700 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.02, for a total value of $1,159,774.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 20,246 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,255,656.92. The trade was a 48.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, President Thomas R. Scalf sold 29,500 shares of Donaldson stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.89, for a total transaction of $2,032,255.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now directly owns 28,334 shares in the company, valued at $1,951,929.26. The trade was a 51.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 76,700 shares of company stock worth $5,164,799 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 2.70% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently weighed in on DCI shares. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Donaldson from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on Donaldson from $70.00 to $63.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $71.33.

Donaldson Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of DCI stock traded up $0.13 on Monday, hitting $63.54. The stock had a trading volume of 22,972 shares, compared to its average volume of 568,557. The company's 50 day moving average price is $67.58 and its 200-day moving average price is $70.85. Donaldson Company, Inc. has a 1 year low of $57.45 and a 1 year high of $78.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.47, a P/E/G ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.85 and a quick ratio of 1.20.

Donaldson (NYSE:DCI - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The industrial products company reported $0.83 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.85 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $870.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $908.32 million. Donaldson had a return on equity of 29.07% and a net margin of 11.56%. Analysts anticipate that Donaldson Company, Inc. will post 3.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Donaldson Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 13th were paid a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 13th. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.70%. Donaldson's dividend payout ratio is currently 31.58%.

Donaldson Profile

Donaldson Company, Inc manufactures and sells filtration systems and replacement parts worldwide. The company operates through three segments: Mobile Solutions, Industrial Solutions, and Life Sciences. Its Mobile Solutions segment provides replacement filters for air and liquid filtration applications, such as air filtration systems; liquid filtration systems for fuel, lube, and hydraulic applications; exhaust and emissions systems and sensors; indicators; and monitoring systems.