Fortive (NYSE:FTV) CAO Sells $1,177,588.72 in Stock

Key Points

• Fortive CAO Christopher Mulhall sold 17,962 shares for approximately $1.18 million, reducing his ownership by 28.71% to 44,598 shares.
• Fortive reported quarterly earnings of $0.77 per share, beating estimates by $0.07, while revenue rose 7.8% year over year to $1.11 billion.
• Shares traded up 2.4% to $66.77, near the 52-week high, while analysts maintained an overall “Hold” rating with an average price target of $64.36; the company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.07.

Fortive Corporation (NYSE:FTV - Get Free Report) CAO Christopher Mulhall sold 17,962 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.56, for a total transaction of $1,177,588.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 44,598 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,923,844.88. This trade represents a 28.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link.

Fortive Trading Up 2.4%

Shares of NYSE FTV traded up $1.53 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $66.77. 3,835,360 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,498,612. The company has a market capitalization of $20.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.61, a P/E/G ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 1.07. Fortive Corporation has a 52-week low of $49.03 and a 52-week high of $67.30. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $57.90 and a 200-day moving average price of $58.71.

Fortive (NYSE:FTV - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 28th. The technology company reported $0.77 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.70 by $0.07. Fortive had a net margin of 14.83% and a return on equity of 15.79%. The business had revenue of $1.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.07 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.68 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Fortive Corporation will post 3.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fortive Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 4th were issued a $0.07 dividend. This is a boost from Fortive's previous quarterly dividend of $0.06. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 4th. This represents a $0.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. Fortive's payout ratio is presently 13.33%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FTV has been the topic of several analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on Fortive from $59.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Fortive from $56.00 to $59.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Thursday. Argus reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $68.00 price target on shares of Fortive in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. Mizuho set a $55.00 price target on Fortive in a report on Thursday. Finally, Evercore initiated coverage on shares of Fortive in a research note on Monday, September 28th. They set a "hold" rating and a $60.00 price objective for the company. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $64.36.

Institutional Trading of Fortive

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in FTV. Mather Group LLC. raised its position in shares of Fortive by 86.8% in the 3rd quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 467 shares of the technology company's stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 217 shares during the period. Virtus Advisers LLC acquired a new position in Fortive in the second quarter valued at $30,000. Keating Financial Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new position in Fortive in the second quarter valued at $30,000. Main Street Group LTD purchased a new stake in Fortive during the first quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA grew its position in Fortive by 59.2% during the first quarter. Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA now owns 702 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 261 shares during the period. 94.94% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Fortive

Fortive Corporation NYSE: FTV is a diversified industrial technology company that develops and provides products, software and services designed to improve the productivity, safety, reliability and efficiency of businesses and public-sector organizations. Its offerings support customers in industries including manufacturing, healthcare, utilities, transportation, commercial facilities and government.

The company's portfolio includes electronic test and measurement equipment, calibration and asset-management solutions, workplace and facility-management software, engineering and infrastructure software, product identification and traceability systems, and healthcare technology.

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