New York Life Investment Management LLC Cuts Holdings in Fortive Co. (NYSE:FTV)

New York Life Investment Management LLC decreased its holdings in Fortive Co. (NYSE:FTV) by 0.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 51,350 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 273 shares during the quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Fortive were worth $3,851,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Fortive during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Fortive during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its holdings in Fortive by 186.8% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 456 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 297 shares during the last quarter. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new position in shares of Fortive in the fourth quarter valued at $37,000. Finally, Albion Financial Group UT acquired a new position in shares of Fortive during the 4th quarter worth $38,000. 94.94% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Argus reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Fortive in a research report on Monday, November 18th. UBS Group initiated coverage on Fortive in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $84.00 price target for the company. Citigroup cut Fortive from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $92.00 to $86.00 in a report on Monday, December 9th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Fortive from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of Fortive from $77.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $87.64.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO James A. Lico sold 196,117 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.38, for a total transaction of $15,763,884.46. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 528,851 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $42,509,043.38. This represents a 27.05 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Stacey A. Walker sold 5,688 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.52, for a total value of $457,997.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 47,141 shares in the company, valued at $3,795,793.32. This trade represents a 10.77 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 208,298 shares of company stock worth $16,740,998 over the last ninety days. 1.01% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Fortive Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE FTV opened at $79.73 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $27.66 billion, a PE ratio of 33.78, a P/E/G ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $78.70 and a 200-day moving average of $76.53. Fortive Co. has a 52-week low of $66.15 and a 52-week high of $87.10.

Fortive (NYSE:FTV) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 7th. The technology company reported $1.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.05. Fortive had a return on equity of 13.15% and a net margin of 13.36%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.98 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Fortive Co. will post 4.05 EPS for the current year.

Fortive Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.40%. Fortive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 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.