Fortive Co. (NYSE:FTV) Short Interest Down 8.7% in January

Fortive Co. (NYSE:FTV) was the target of a significant decline in short interest during the month of January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 5,040,000 shares, a decline of 8.7% from the January 15th total of 5,520,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 2,570,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.0 days.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Fortive

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in FTV. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC bought a new stake in Fortive during the fourth quarter worth approximately $136,794,000. Vise Technologies Inc. bought a new stake in Fortive during the fourth quarter worth approximately $253,000. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC bought a new stake in Fortive during the fourth quarter worth approximately $497,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its holdings in Fortive by 6.1% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,653,071 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $273,980,000 after purchasing an additional 208,866 shares in the last quarter. Finally, USS Investment Management Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Fortive by 533.3% in the fourth quarter. USS Investment Management Ltd now owns 87,402 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $6,556,000 after buying an additional 73,602 shares in the last quarter. 94.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on FTV shares. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Fortive from $77.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. UBS Group began coverage on Fortive in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $84.00 price target for the company. Barclays decreased their price target on Fortive from $95.00 to $90.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on Fortive from $89.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Argus reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Fortive in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $87.64.

Fortive Stock Performance

Shares of FTV stock opened at $81.75 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The business has a 50 day moving average of $77.87 and a two-hundred day moving average of $75.80. Fortive has a 52 week low of $66.15 and a 52 week high of $87.10. The company has a market cap of $28.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.57, a PEG ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.15.

Fortive (NYSE:FTV) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 7th. The technology company reported $1.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.05. Fortive had a return on equity of 12.56% and a net margin of 14.35%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.98 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Fortive will post 3.84 EPS for the current year.

Fortive Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.39%. Fortive’s dividend payout ratio is presently 12.75%.

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.