MML Investors Services LLC Sells 25,714 Shares of Fortive Co. (NYSE:FTV)

MML Investors Services LLC lowered its holdings in shares of Fortive Co. (NYSE:FTV) by 46.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 29,095 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 25,714 shares during the period. MML Investors Services LLC’s holdings in Fortive were worth $2,182,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of FTV. Dodge & Cox acquired a new stake in shares of Fortive during the 4th quarter worth about $583,493,000. Norges Bank bought a new position in Fortive in the 4th quarter valued at about $412,445,000. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC acquired a new stake in Fortive during the fourth quarter worth approximately $136,794,000. Clean Energy Transition LLP bought a new stake in shares of Fortive during the fourth quarter worth approximately $58,829,000. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in shares of Fortive by 28.4% in the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,695,319 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $127,149,000 after purchasing an additional 374,837 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.94% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Charles E. Mclaughlin sold 32,085 shares of Fortive stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $78.86, for a total transaction of $2,530,223.10. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 76,126 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,003,296.36. The trade was a 29.65 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Stacey A. Walker sold 3,002 shares of Fortive stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $79.05, for a total transaction of $237,308.10. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 42,373 shares in the company, valued at $3,349,585.65. The trade was a 6.62 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 243,385 shares of company stock valued at $19,508,529 in the last quarter. Insiders own 1.01% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

FTV has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Fortive from $90.00 to $73.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Citigroup reduced their price target on Fortive from $84.00 to $69.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Truist Financial dropped their price objective on Fortive from $90.00 to $81.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Fortive from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Fortive from $90.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report 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’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Fortive has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $81.92.

Fortive Trading Down 0.1 %

Fortive stock opened at $68.82 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $23.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.16, a PEG ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 1.12. Fortive Co. has a fifty-two week low of $60.39 and a fifty-two week high of $83.32. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $72.08 and its 200-day moving average price is $75.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.16.

Fortive (NYSE:FTV) last announced its earnings results on Friday, February 7th. The technology company reported $1.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 firm earned $0.98 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Fortive Co. will post 4.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fortive Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 27th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be issued a $0.08 dividend. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.46%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 30th. Fortive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 13.56%.

Fortive Company Profile

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.