Donaldson (NYSE:DCI) Hits New 52-Week Low Following Weak Earnings

Shares of Donaldson Company, Inc. (NYSE:DCI) hit a new 52-week low during trading on Thursday following a weaker than expected earnings announcement. The stock traded as low as $65.10 and last traded at $68.21, with a volume of 37574 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $69.25.

The industrial products company reported $0.83 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.85 by ($0.02). Donaldson had a net margin of 11.56% and a return on equity of 29.07%.

Donaldson Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 13th will be paid a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 13th. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.59%. Donaldson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 31.40%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

DCI has been the topic of several research analyst reports. StockNews.com raised Donaldson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Donaldson from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Donaldson from $81.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $74.00.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Trudy A. Rautio sold 14,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.60, for a total value of $946,400.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 26,420 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,785,992. This represents a 34.64 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 2.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Donaldson

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Donaldson by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,717,289 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $856,509,000 after buying an additional 33,139 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in Donaldson by 6.2% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,994,275 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $269,014,000 after buying an additional 231,424 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in Donaldson by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,981,739 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $220,380,000 after buying an additional 73,234 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Donaldson by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,520,586 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $169,804,000 after buying an additional 71,707 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fiduciary Management Inc. WI boosted its holdings in Donaldson by 19.9% in the 4th quarter. Fiduciary Management Inc. WI now owns 2,209,279 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $148,795,000 after buying an additional 367,383 shares during the last quarter. 82.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Donaldson Trading Down 1.8 %

The company has a market capitalization of $8.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.86, a PEG ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a fifty day moving average of $69.28 and a 200-day moving average of $72.16. The company has a current ratio of 1.85, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

Donaldson Company 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.