Dover (NYSE:DOV) Shares Gap Down – Should You Sell?

Shares of Dover Co. (NYSE:DOV) gapped down before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $191.68, but opened at $185.96. Dover shares last traded at $183.63, with a volume of 315,227 shares changing hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on DOV shares. Robert W. Baird restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $208.00 price objective on shares of Dover in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Dover from $192.00 to $193.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Oppenheimer restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $215.00 target price (up from $210.00) on shares of Dover in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Dover from $190.00 to $197.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Finally, Mizuho raised their target price on shares of Dover from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $198.75.

Dover Trading Down 3.8 %

The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $186.54 and its 200-day simple moving average is $182.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.34 billion, a PE ratio of 18.41, a P/E/G ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 1.53.

Dover (NYSE:DOV) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The industrial products company reported $2.36 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $2.18 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.15 billion. Dover had a return on equity of 24.94% and a net margin of 17.58%. Dover’s quarterly revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.05 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Dover Co. will post 9.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Dover Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 30th were issued a $0.515 dividend. This represents a $2.06 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.12%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 30th. This is a positive change from Dover’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.51. Dover’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.79%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Brad M. Cerepak sold 4,341 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $184.59, for a total value of $801,305.19. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 12,324 shares in the company, valued at $2,274,887.16. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other news, CEO Richard J. Tobin sold 25,004 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $181.96, for a total transaction of $4,549,727.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 182,928 shares in the company, valued at $33,285,578.88. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Brad M. Cerepak sold 4,341 shares of Dover stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $184.59, for a total value of $801,305.19. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 12,324 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,274,887.16. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 45,383 shares of company stock worth $8,169,883. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Dover

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of DOV. Forsta AP Fonden grew its holdings in shares of Dover by 17.7% in the 3rd quarter. Forsta AP Fonden now owns 34,500 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $6,615,000 after acquiring an additional 5,200 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Dover by 20.4% in the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 15,108 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,913,000 after buying an additional 2,565 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP boosted its stake in shares of Dover by 17.7% in the third quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 2,493 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $478,000 after purchasing an additional 375 shares during the period. Cromwell Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in Dover by 50.5% in the 3rd quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 313 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $60,000 after buying an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Joel Isaacson & Co. LLC raised its stake in shares of Dover by 14.1% in the 3rd quarter. Joel Isaacson & Co. LLC now owns 4,050 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $777,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.46% of the company’s stock.

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.