Fortive Co. (NYSE:FTV) Shares Sold by Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank cut its holdings in shares of Fortive Co. (NYSE:FTV) by 10.2% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 334,234 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 37,800 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in Fortive were worth $25,068,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. First Hawaiian Bank raised its stake in shares of Fortive by 197.0% in the fourth quarter. First Hawaiian Bank now owns 15,264 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,145,000 after acquiring an additional 10,125 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in Fortive by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 406,085 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $32,052,000 after purchasing an additional 10,795 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Fortive by 26.4% in the 4th quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 37,502 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $2,832,000 after buying an additional 7,829 shares during the period. XTX Topco Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Fortive during the third quarter worth about $1,346,000. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB increased its stake in shares of Fortive by 23.9% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,574,289 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $118,292,000 after buying an additional 303,788 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.94% of the company’s stock.

Fortive Stock Performance

Shares of FTV opened at $74.22 on Wednesday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $78.93 and its 200-day simple moving average is $76.86. Fortive Co. has a 12-month low of $66.15 and a 12-month high of $87.10. The firm has a market cap of $25.26 billion, a PE ratio of 31.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a current ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33.

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 net margin of 13.36% and a return on equity of 13.15%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.98 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Fortive Co. will post 4.05 EPS for the current year.

Fortive Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be paid a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.43%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. Fortive’s dividend payout ratio is presently 13.56%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Stacey A. Walker sold 5,688 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were 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 directly owns 47,141 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,795,793.32. This represents a 10.77 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO James A. Lico sold 196,117 shares of Fortive stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The shares were 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 directly owns 528,851 shares in the company, valued at $42,509,043.38. This represents a 27.05 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 243,385 shares of company stock valued at $19,508,529. 1.01% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on FTV shares. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Fortive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Fortive from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Barclays dropped their target price on Fortive from $95.00 to $90.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on Fortive from $77.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Fortive from $92.00 to $90.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Fortive currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $87.64.

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.