Congress Asset Management Co. Trims Stock Holdings in Dover Co. (NYSE:DOV)

Congress Asset Management Co. lessened its stake in shares of Dover Co. (NYSE:DOV) by 71.8% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 1,159 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 2,948 shares during the quarter. Congress Asset Management Co.’s holdings in Dover were worth $217,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Spire Wealth Management lifted its stake in shares of Dover by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 2,475 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $464,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the period. Independent Advisor Alliance boosted its holdings in shares of Dover by 0.3% during the third quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 18,036 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,458,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. ORG Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Dover by 5.4% in the fourth quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 1,140 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $214,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the period. Trust Point Inc. increased its stake in Dover by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Trust Point Inc. now owns 1,957 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $367,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Main Street Financial Solutions LLC lifted its position in Dover by 2.7% during the third quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC now owns 2,255 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $432,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.46% of the company’s stock.

Dover Price Performance

DOV opened at $205.21 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.52, a current ratio of 2.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $195.35 and its 200 day moving average price is $192.09. Dover Co. has a fifty-two week low of $159.48 and a fifty-two week high of $222.31. The firm has a market cap of $28.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.24.

Dover (NYSE:DOV) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.20 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.20. Dover had a return on equity of 21.03% and a net margin of 32.95%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Dover Co. will post 9.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Dover Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a dividend of $0.515 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $2.06 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.00%. Dover’s dividend payout ratio is currently 10.59%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Dover from $202.00 to $223.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Dover from $236.00 to $222.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 13th. Wolfe Research upgraded Dover from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $227.00 price objective for the company in a report on Monday, October 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Dover from $208.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $225.00 target price (up from $220.00) on shares of Dover in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Dover has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $218.91.

About Dover

Dover Corporation provides equipment and components, consumable supplies, aftermarket parts, software and digital solutions, and support services worldwide. The company's Engineered Products segment provides various equipment, component, software, solution, and services that are used in vehicle aftermarket, waste handling, industrial automation, aerospace and defense, industrial winch and hoist, and fluid dispensing end-market.