World Investment Advisors Reduces Stake in Fortive Co. (NYSE:FTV)

World Investment Advisors reduced its position in shares of Fortive Co. (NYSE:FTV - Free Report) by 97.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,803 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 148,621 shares during the quarter. World Investment Advisors' holdings in Fortive were worth $285,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of FTV. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Fortive during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its stake in Fortive by 186.8% during 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 shares of Fortive in the fourth quarter worth $37,000. Albion Financial Group UT purchased a new position in shares of Fortive in the fourth quarter worth $38,000. Finally, Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA boosted its position in shares of Fortive by 28.6% during the fourth quarter. Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA now owns 786 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $59,000 after buying an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. 94.94% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. BNP Paribas lowered Fortive from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $67.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Fortive from $90.00 to $85.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Fortive from $77.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. StockNews.com cut Fortive from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Fortive from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Eight 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 stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $83.33.

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Insider Activity at Fortive

In other news, SVP Stacey A. Walker sold 5,688 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.52, for a total transaction of $457,997.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO James A. Lico sold 196,117 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.38, for a total value of $15,763,884.46. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 528,851 shares in the company, valued at $42,509,043.38. This represents a 27.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 243,385 shares of company stock valued at $19,508,529. 1.01% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Fortive Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:FTV traded up $0.87 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $65.85. 105,967 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,353,606. The company's 50 day moving average price is $75.19 and its 200-day moving average price is $76.27. The firm has a market cap of $22.41 billion, a PE ratio of 27.90, a PEG ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 1.12. Fortive Co. has a 52 week low of $60.39 and a 52 week high of $83.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 1.16 and a quick ratio of 0.91.

Fortive (NYSE:FTV - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 7th. The technology company reported $1.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.98 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Fortive Co. will post 4.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fortive Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 27th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be given a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.49%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 30th. Fortive's dividend payout ratio is currently 13.56%.

About Fortive

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.