Short Interest in Dover Co. (NYSE:DOV) Declines By 19.4%

Dover Co. (NYSE:DOV) was the recipient of a large decline in short interest during the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,330,000 shares, a decline of 19.4% from the November 30th total of 1,650,000 shares. Currently, 1.0% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 807,600 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.6 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have weighed in on DOV shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Dover from $210.00 to $212.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. UBS Group started coverage on Dover in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $217.00 price objective for the company. Barclays boosted their price objective on Dover from $190.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Wolfe Research raised Dover from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $227.00 price objective for the company in a report on Monday, October 28th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Dover from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $213.91.

Dover Price Performance

Shares of DOV opened at $188.33 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.57. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $197.46 and a 200 day simple moving average of $188.22. Dover has a 52-week low of $143.96 and a 52-week high of $208.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.84 billion, a PE ratio of 16.85, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.22.

Dover Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th were given a $0.515 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 29th. This represents a $2.06 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.09%. Dover’s dividend payout ratio is presently 18.43%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Dover

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Versor Investments LP acquired a new position in shares of Dover in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,920,000. Brendel Financial Advisors LLC boosted its position in Dover by 347.7% during the 3rd quarter. Brendel Financial Advisors LLC now owns 22,772 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,366,000 after acquiring an additional 17,685 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in Dover by 3.1% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 177,844 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $34,100,000 after acquiring an additional 5,372 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its position in Dover by 54.3% during 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 last quarter. Finally, Virtu Financial LLC boosted its position in Dover by 85.1% during the 3rd quarter. Virtu Financial LLC now owns 14,373 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,756,000 after acquiring an additional 6,608 shares during the last quarter. 84.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.