Fortive Co. (NYSE:FTV) Shares Sold by Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc.

Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Fortive Co. (NYSE:FTV - Free Report) by 0.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 981,019 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 9,029 shares during the period. Fortive makes up 1.4% of Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 20th biggest position. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. owned approximately 0.28% of Fortive worth $73,576,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in shares of Fortive during the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in Fortive by 186.8% in the 4th 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 Fortive in the fourth quarter worth approximately $37,000. Albion Financial Group UT acquired a new stake in Fortive during the fourth quarter worth $38,000. Finally, Exchange Traded Concepts LLC purchased a new stake in Fortive in the third quarter valued at $41,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.94% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently issued reports on FTV shares. Citigroup downgraded Fortive from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $92.00 to $86.00 in a research report on Monday, December 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Fortive from $92.00 to $90.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. StockNews.com cut Fortive from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday. Argus reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Fortive in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Fortive from $95.00 to $90.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Fortive has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $87.64.

Fortive Stock Performance

Shares of FTV stock traded up $1.51 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $81.68. The company had a trading volume of 2,290,588 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,384,279. Fortive Co. has a 52-week low of $66.15 and a 52-week high of $87.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 0.99. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $77.74 and its 200 day simple moving average is $75.57. The stock has a market cap of $28.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.54, a PEG ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.15.

Fortive (NYSE:FTV - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, February 7th. The technology company reported $1.17 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.05. Fortive had a net margin of 14.35% and a return on equity of 12.56%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.98 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Fortive Co. will post 3.84 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, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a $0.08 dividend. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.39%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. Fortive's payout ratio is 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.