AlphaQuest LLC Cuts Stake in Donaldson Company, Inc. (NYSE:DCI)

AlphaQuest LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Donaldson Company, Inc. (NYSE:DCI) by 44.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 21,911 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 17,757 shares during the period. AlphaQuest LLC’s holdings in Donaldson were worth $1,476,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Donaldson by 43.2% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 597 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 180 shares during the period. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in Donaldson during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $41,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Donaldson by 89.6% during the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 781 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $53,000 after buying an additional 369 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in Donaldson by 28.7% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 925 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $62,000 after acquiring an additional 206 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kentucky Trust Co acquired a new position in Donaldson during the 4th quarter worth approximately $105,000. 82.81% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. StockNews.com cut shares of Donaldson from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Donaldson from $81.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Donaldson from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Donaldson currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $74.00.

Donaldson Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of Donaldson stock opened at $69.84 on Monday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $69.38 and a 200-day simple moving average of $71.97. Donaldson Company, Inc. has a 12-month low of $65.10 and a 12-month high of $78.95. The company has a current ratio of 1.85, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The stock has a market cap of $8.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.30, a PEG ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 1.04.

Donaldson (NYSE:DCI) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The industrial products company reported $0.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.85 by ($0.02). Donaldson had a net margin of 11.56% and a return on equity of 29.07%. The company had revenue of $870.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $908.32 million. On average, equities analysts forecast that Donaldson Company, Inc. will post 3.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Donaldson Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 13th were issued a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.55%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 13th. Donaldson’s payout ratio is 31.58%.

Insider Activity

In related news, President Thomas R. Scalf sold 29,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.89, for a total transaction of $2,032,255.00. Following the transaction, the president now owns 28,334 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,951,929.26. This trade represents a 51.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Trudy A. Rautio sold 14,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.60, for a total value of $946,400.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 26,420 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,785,992. This represents a 34.64 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 2.70% of the company’s stock.

Donaldson Profile

Donaldson Company, Inc manufactures and sells filtration systems and replacement parts worldwide. The company operates through three segments: Mobile Solutions, Industrial Solutions, and Life Sciences. Its Mobile Solutions segment provides replacement filters for air and liquid filtration applications, such as air filtration systems; liquid filtration systems for fuel, lube, and hydraulic applications; exhaust and emissions systems and sensors; indicators; and monitoring systems.