Lansdowne Partners UK LLP Buys 4,657 Shares of Fortive Co. (NYSE:FTV)

Lansdowne Partners UK LLP grew its position in Fortive Co. (NYSE:FTV) by 58.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 12,610 shares of the technology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,657 shares during the quarter. Fortive makes up approximately 0.1% of Lansdowne Partners UK LLP’s portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest holding. Lansdowne Partners UK LLP’s holdings in Fortive were worth $946,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. First Hawaiian Bank grew its holdings in Fortive by 197.0% in the 4th quarter. First Hawaiian Bank now owns 15,264 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,145,000 after buying an additional 10,125 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Fortive by 2.7% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 406,085 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $32,052,000 after acquiring an additional 10,795 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Fortive by 26.4% in the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 37,502 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $2,832,000 after acquiring an additional 7,829 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its position in Fortive by 23.9% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,574,289 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $118,292,000 after acquiring an additional 303,788 shares during the period. Finally, Asahi Life Asset Management CO. LTD. acquired a new position in Fortive during the 4th quarter valued at $358,000. 94.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Fortive Trading Up 1.6 %

Shares of Fortive stock opened at $64.81 on Friday. Fortive Co. has a 12-month low of $60.39 and a 12-month high of $83.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $75.19 and a 200 day simple moving average of $76.29. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33.

Fortive (NYSE:FTV) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 7th. The technology company reported $1.17 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.05. Fortive had a net margin of 13.36% and a return on equity of 13.15%. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.98 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Fortive Co. will post 4.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fortive Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 27th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be given a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 30th. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.49%. Fortive’s payout ratio is 13.56%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Fortive news, CEO James A. Lico sold 196,117 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.38, for a total value of $15,763,884.46. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 528,851 shares in the company, valued at approximately $42,509,043.38. This trade represents a 27.05 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Stacey A. Walker sold 5,688 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.52, for a total transaction of $457,997.76. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 47,141 shares in the company, valued at $3,795,793.32. The trade was a 10.77 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 243,385 shares of company stock valued at $19,508,529. 1.01% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

FTV has been the topic of several research reports. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Fortive from $77.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Fortive from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Truist Financial cut their price target on Fortive from $90.00 to $81.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Fortive from $90.00 to $73.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Barclays cut their target price on Fortive from $90.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 26th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $83.33.

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.