Pictet Asset Management Holding SA Sells 36,626 Shares of Fortive Corporation $FTV

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA lessened its holdings in Fortive Corporation (NYSE:FTV) by 10.2% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 321,095 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 36,626 shares during the quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA’s holdings in Fortive were worth $17,600,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Arkadios Wealth Advisors grew its stake in shares of Fortive by 2.1% in the first quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 9,047 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $500,000 after acquiring an additional 187 shares in the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. raised its stake in shares of Fortive by 86.8% in the third quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 467 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 217 shares in the last quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Fortive by 2.0% in the second quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 11,127 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $680,000 after acquiring an additional 222 shares in the last quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. boosted its holdings in Fortive by 4.2% in the first quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. now owns 5,604 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $310,000 after purchasing an additional 224 shares during the period. Finally, Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA boosted its holdings in Fortive by 59.2% in the first quarter. Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA now owns 702 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 261 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.94% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FTV has been the subject of several analyst reports. Evercore initiated coverage on Fortive in a research note on Monday, September 28th. They set a “hold” rating and a $60.00 target price for the company. Citigroup upped their price target on Fortive from $65.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on Fortive from $59.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 29th. Robert W. Baird set a $75.00 price objective on Fortive in a research note on Thursday, October 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Fortive from $56.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Fortive currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $64.36.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Christopher M. Mulhall sold 17,962 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.56, for a total transaction of $1,177,588.72. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 44,598 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,923,844.88. This trade represents a 28.71% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Peter Underwood sold 48,442 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.60, for a total value of $3,129,353.20. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 79,118 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,111,022.80. The trade was a 37.98% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 74,497 shares of company stock valued at $4,837,600. Insiders own 0.65% of the company’s stock.

Fortive Price Performance

Shares of FTV opened at $67.83 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.30, a PEG ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 1.03. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $59.20 and its 200-day simple moving average is $59.20. Fortive Corporation has a twelve month low of $50.09 and a twelve month high of $68.94. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59.

Fortive (NYSE:FTV) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The technology company reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.70 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $1.11 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.07 billion. Fortive had a net margin of 14.83% and a return on equity of 15.79%. The company’s revenue was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.68 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Fortive Corporation will post 3.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fortive Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 27th will be given a dividend of $0.07 per share. This represents a $0.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 27th. Fortive’s dividend payout ratio is currently 13.33%.

Fortive Profile

Fortive is a global technology company that develops products and software for industrial, infrastructure and healthcare customers. Its businesses focus on helping organizations improve the safety, reliability and efficiency of their operations. Fortive’s offerings include electronic test and measurement tools, industrial safety and gas-detection systems, and software for managing facilities, assets and construction projects. Its portfolio includes brands such as Fluke, Industrial Scientific, Gordian, Accruent and Provation.