Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc. Takes $2.14 Million Position in Veralto Co. (NYSE:VLTO)

Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Veralto Co. (NYSE:VLTO - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 21,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,139,000.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in Veralto in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Veralto by 692.3% during the third quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 309 shares of the company's stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 270 shares during the period. Albion Financial Group UT grew its position in shares of Veralto by 2,100.0% in the fourth quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 352 shares of the company's stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 336 shares during the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Veralto during the fourth quarter worth approximately $42,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its holdings in Veralto by 140.1% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 437 shares of the company's stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 255 shares during the last quarter. 91.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Veralto Price Performance

NYSE:VLTO traded up $0.49 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $98.21. The stock had a trading volume of 2,816,519 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,480,171. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $101.54 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $105.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.92 and a quick ratio of 1.69. Veralto Co. has a 12 month low of $85.70 and a 12 month high of $115.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.29 billion, a PE ratio of 29.41, a P/E/G ratio of 4.24 and a beta of 1.06.

Veralto (NYSE:VLTO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $0.95 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.05. Veralto had a return on equity of 49.29% and a net margin of 16.04%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Veralto Co. will post 3.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Veralto Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were given a $0.11 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.45%. This is a positive change from Veralto's previous quarterly dividend of $0.09. Veralto's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 13.17%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Melissa Aquino sold 463 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.60, for a total transaction of $46,114.80. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 20,761 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,067,795.60. The trade was a 2.18 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.31% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on VLTO shares. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on Veralto from $116.00 to $110.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Veralto from $111.00 to $110.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Veralto in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $125.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Veralto from $118.00 to $116.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $112.55.

Veralto Profile

Veralto Corporation provides water analytics, water treatment, marking and coding, and packaging and color services worldwide. It operates through two segments, Water Quality (WQ) and Product Quality & Innovation (PQI). The WQ segment offers precision instrumentation and water treatment technologies to measure, analyze, and treat water in residential, commercial, municipal, industrial, research, and natural resource applications through the Hach, Trojan Technologies, and ChemTreat brands.