Fortive (FTV) Competitors

Fortive (NYSE:FTV) and AMETEK (NYSE:AME) are both large-cap computer and technology companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, earnings, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, valuation, media sentiment, risk and profitability.

Does the media refer more to FTV or AME?

In the previous week, AMETEK had 11 more articles in the media than Fortive. MarketBeat recorded 35 mentions for AMETEK and 24 mentions for Fortive. Fortive's average media sentiment score of 1.43 beat AMETEK's score of 1.37 indicating that Fortive is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Fortive	20 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	3 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
AMETEK	27 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	7 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Do institutionals and insiders believe in FTV or AME?

94.9% of Fortive shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 87.4% of AMETEK shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.9% of Fortive shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.6% of AMETEK shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Which has more volatility and risk, FTV or AME?

Fortive has a beta of 1.1, indicating that its stock price is 10% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, AMETEK has a beta of 1.1, indicating that its stock price is 10% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Is FTV or AME a better dividend stock?

Fortive pays an annual dividend of $0.24 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.5%. AMETEK pays an annual dividend of $1.24 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.7%. Fortive pays out 10.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. AMETEK pays out 20.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Fortive has raised its dividend for 2 consecutive years and AMETEK has raised its dividend for 6 consecutive years. AMETEK is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Do analysts recommend FTV or AME?

Fortive currently has a consensus price target of $62.79, indicating a potential upside of 28.44%. AMETEK has a consensus price target of $205.00, indicating a potential upside of 7.92%. Given Fortive's higher possible upside, research analysts plainly believe Fortive is more favorable than AMETEK.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Fortive	0 Sell rating(s)	13 Hold rating(s)	4 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.24
AMETEK	0 Sell rating(s)	7 Hold rating(s)	7 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.50

Which has better earnings and valuation, FTV or AME?

AMETEK has higher revenue and earnings than Fortive. Fortive is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than AMETEK, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Fortive	$6.23B	2.65	$832.90M	$2.22	22.02
AMETEK	$6.94B	6.32	$1.38B	$6.21	30.59

Is FTV or AME more profitable?

AMETEK has a net margin of 20.60% compared to Fortive's net margin of 13.62%. AMETEK's return on equity of 16.53% beat Fortive's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Fortive	13.62%	11.96%	7.08%
AMETEK	20.60%	16.53%	10.98%

Summary

AMETEK beats Fortive on 13 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.