World Investment Advisors LLC Makes New $12.03 Million Investment in Fortive Co. (NYSE:FTV)

World Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Fortive Co. (NYSE:FTV - Free Report) during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 152,424 shares of the technology company's stock, valued at approximately $12,031,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of FTV. Raymond James & Associates lifted its stake in shares of Fortive by 15.0% in the 3rd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 395,488 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $31,216,000 after purchasing an additional 51,690 shares during the last quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in Fortive by 4.8% during the 3rd quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. now owns 4,932 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $389,000 after purchasing an additional 226 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in Fortive by 111.3% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 541 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 285 shares during the period. Versor Investments LP acquired a new stake in Fortive in the 2nd quarter worth $749,000. Finally, TD Asset Management Inc increased its holdings in shares of Fortive by 3.6% during the 2nd quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 864,924 shares of the technology company's stock worth $64,091,000 after purchasing an additional 30,234 shares during the period. 94.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently weighed in on FTV. Citigroup downgraded Fortive from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $92.00 to $86.00 in a research report on Monday. Raymond James upgraded Fortive from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $85.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on Fortive in a research report on Friday, September 6th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $89.00 price objective for the company. Wolfe Research cut Fortive from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a report on Friday, September 6th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Fortive from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $86.73.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Stacey A. Walker sold 171,808 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.71, for a total value of $12,320,351.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 42,651 shares in the company, valued at $3,058,503.21. This trade represents a 80.11 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Jonathan L. Schwarz sold 14,223 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.80, for a total transaction of $1,049,657.40. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 68,161 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,030,281.80. The trade was a 17.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 197,895 shares of company stock valued at $14,261,051. Company insiders own 1.01% of the company's stock.

Fortive Trading Down 1.9 %

NYSE FTV traded down $1.45 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $76.83. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,221,545 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,001,205. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $76.39 and a 200 day moving average of $74.34. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. Fortive Co. has a twelve month low of $66.15 and a twelve month high of $87.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.55, a PEG ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 1.14.

Fortive (NYSE:FTV - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The technology company reported $0.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.93 by $0.04. Fortive had a return on equity of 12.56% and a net margin of 14.35%. The firm had revenue of $1.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.55 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.85 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Fortive Co. will post 3.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fortive Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 27th. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th will be given a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.42%. Fortive's dividend payout ratio is currently 12.75%.

Fortive 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.