Fortive (NYSE:FTV) Sets New 1-Year High After Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Key Points

• Fortive shares reached a new 52-week high of $67.03 after the company reported quarterly EPS of $0.77 and revenue of $1.11 billion, exceeding analyst expectations. Revenue increased 7.8% year over year.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend from $0.06 to $0.07 per share, equivalent to a $0.28 annualized dividend and a 0.4% yield.
• Analysts remain cautious, with Fortive carrying an average “Hold” rating and a consensus price target of $61.27, despite substantial institutional ownership of 94.94%.

Fortive Corporation (NYSE:FTV - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The company traded as high as $67.03 and last traded at $63.3640, with a volume of 2,642,769 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $61.62.

The technology company reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.70 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $1.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.07 billion. Fortive had a return on equity of 15.33% and a net margin of 12.38%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.68 EPS.

Fortive Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 4th were issued a dividend of $0.07 per share. This represents a $0.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. This is a boost from Fortive's previous quarterly dividend of $0.06. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 4th. Fortive's payout ratio is currently 16.57%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their target price on shares of Fortive from $63.00 to $59.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 14th. Argus reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $68.00 price target on shares of Fortive in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on Fortive from $68.00 to $63.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 5th. Weiss Ratings lowered Fortive from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 27th. Finally, Evercore initiated coverage on Fortive in a research note on Monday, September 28th. They set a "hold" rating and a $60.00 price objective for the company. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Fortive presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $61.27.

Insider Activity at Fortive

In other news, SVP Peter C. Underwood sold 8,662 shares of Fortive stock in a transaction on Monday, August 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.59, for a total transaction of $533,492.58. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 79,118 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,872,877.62. The trade was a 9.87% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.65% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FTV. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Fortive in the 2nd quarter worth about $1,626,463,000. Flossbach Von Storch SE bought a new stake in Fortive in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $739,668,000. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC bought a new stake in Fortive in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $527,526,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company purchased a new stake in shares of Fortive in the 2nd quarter valued at $211,807,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in shares of Fortive during the 2nd quarter valued at $115,914,000. Institutional investors own 94.94% of the company's stock.

Fortive Stock Up 3.7%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $57.43 and a 200-day moving average price of $58.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.61, a PEG ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 1.07.

Fortive Company Profile

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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