Raymond James Financial Inc. Makes New Investment in Vontier Co. (NYSE:VNT)

Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Vontier Co. (NYSE:VNT) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 256,745 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,363,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned approximately 0.17% of Vontier as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Bailard Inc. increased its stake in shares of Vontier by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Bailard Inc. now owns 61,207 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,232,000 after buying an additional 356 shares during the period. TD Private Client Wealth LLC increased its stake in shares of Vontier by 9.7% in the third quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 4,557 shares of the company’s stock valued at $154,000 after buying an additional 404 shares during the period. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Vontier by 137.7% in the fourth quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. now owns 744 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 431 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI increased its stake in shares of Vontier by 12.5% in the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 4,345 shares of the company’s stock valued at $147,000 after buying an additional 482 shares during the period. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. boosted its position in shares of Vontier by 12.8% during the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 4,636 shares of the company’s stock valued at $169,000 after purchasing an additional 526 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.83% of the company’s stock.

Vontier Stock Down 0.6 %

VNT stock opened at $33.69 on Friday. Vontier Co. has a twelve month low of $31.22 and a twelve month high of $45.62. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.97. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $36.82 and its 200-day moving average is $36.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.01 billion, a PE ratio of 12.25, a P/E/G ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 1.26.

Vontier (NYSE:VNT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.79 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $776.80 million during the quarter. Vontier had a return on equity of 43.22% and a net margin of 14.17%. Sell-side analysts expect that Vontier Co. will post 3.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vontier Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 6th will be given a $0.025 dividend. This represents a $0.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.30%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 6th. Vontier’s dividend payout ratio is currently 3.64%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently commented on VNT. UBS Group began coverage on Vontier in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. They set a “buy” rating and a $47.00 target price on the stock. Barclays upped their target price on Vontier from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Wolfe Research upgraded Vontier from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $48.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Citigroup cut their target price on Vontier from $46.00 to $44.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Vontier from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $44.67.

Vontier Company Profile

Vontier Corporation provides mobility ecosystem solutions worldwide. The company operates through Mobility Technologies, Repair Solutions, and Environmental and Fueling Solutions segments. The Mobility Technologies segment provides digitally equipment solutions for mobility ecosystem, such as point-of-sale and payment systems, workflow automation, telematics, data analytics, software platform, and integrated solutions for alternative fuel dispensing.