Dover Co. (NYSE:DOV) Short Interest Up 22.2% in February

Dover Co. (NYSE:DOV) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 2,090,000 shares, an increase of 22.2% from the February 13th total of 1,710,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 865,700 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.4 days. Currently, 1.5% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

DOV has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Dover from $208.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Dover from $217.00 to $211.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Oppenheimer restated an “outperform” rating and set a $225.00 target price (up previously from $220.00) on shares of Dover in a research report on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com downgraded Dover from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on Dover from $202.00 to $223.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $218.91.

Dover Trading Down 1.3 %

Dover stock traded down $2.42 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $180.54. The stock had a trading volume of 724,251 shares, compared to its average volume of 891,315. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $194.88 and its 200 day simple moving average is $193.62. Dover has a twelve month low of $168.20 and a twelve month high of $222.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 1.52 and a current ratio of 2.04. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.78 billion, a PE ratio of 9.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 1.24.

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

Dover Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th were paid a $0.515 dividend. This represents a $2.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.14%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. Dover’s dividend payout ratio is presently 10.59%.

Institutional Trading of Dover

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. KBC Group NV boosted its position in shares of Dover by 3.5% in the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 30,224 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $5,796,000 after buying an additional 1,022 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc lifted its position in Dover by 7.7% during the 3rd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 20,587 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,947,000 after acquiring an additional 1,474 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its holdings in Dover by 54.3% in the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 13,158 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,523,000 after acquiring an additional 4,629 shares during the period. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC grew its position in Dover by 4.7% in the third quarter. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC now owns 43,871 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $8,412,000 after acquiring an additional 1,966 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Swiss National Bank raised its stake in shares of Dover by 0.3% during the third quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 407,900 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $78,211,000 after purchasing an additional 1,100 shares during the period. 84.46% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Dover

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.