Dearborn Partners LLC Makes New Investment in Dover Co. (NYSE:DOV)

Dearborn Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Dover Co. (NYSE:DOV) in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor bought 1,081 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $203,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Independent Advisor Alliance grew its position in Dover by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 18,157 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,406,000 after purchasing an additional 121 shares during the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its holdings in Dover by 5.9% in the 4th quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 23,459 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,401,000 after buying an additional 1,314 shares in the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its position in Dover by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 72,466 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $13,595,000 after acquiring an additional 433 shares during the period. AlphaQuest LLC boosted its position in Dover by 170.1% during the 4th quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 13,868 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,602,000 after acquiring an additional 8,733 shares during the period. Finally, Amundi grew its stake in shares of Dover by 42.3% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 648,525 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $121,417,000 after purchasing an additional 192,908 shares in the last quarter. 84.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Dover Stock Performance

DOV stock opened at $181.01 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 2.04 and a quick ratio of 1.52. Dover Co. has a fifty-two week low of $168.20 and a fifty-two week high of $222.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.84 billion, a PE ratio of 9.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $195.55 and a 200 day moving average price of $193.71.

Dover (NYSE:DOV) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.20. Dover had a net margin of 32.95% and a return on equity of 21.03%. Analysts forecast that Dover Co. will post 9.45 EPS for the current year.

Dover Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a dividend of $0.515 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $2.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.14%. Dover’s dividend payout ratio is 10.59%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on DOV shares. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Dover from $196.00 to $214.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Dover from $208.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Dover from $200.00 to $215.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com upgraded Dover from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $225.00 price target (up from $220.00) on shares of Dover in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $218.91.

Dover Company Profile

Dover Corporation provides equipment and components, consumable supplies, aftermarket parts, software and digital solutions, and support services worldwide. The company's Engineered Products segment provides various equipment, component, software, solution, and services that are used in vehicle aftermarket, waste handling, industrial automation, aerospace and defense, industrial winch and hoist, and fluid dispensing end-market.