If you’re wondering whether Fortive’s current share price reflects its true value, you’re not alone. This article is designed to help you weigh what you pay against what you get in return.
Fortive shares last closed at $55.21, with a 7-day return of 0.0% and a 30-day return of 2.9%, down 0.3% year-to-date. The 1-year return is down 4.1%, while the 3-year and 5-year returns are 10.7% and 6.1% respectively.
These mixed return numbers put a spotlight on what may be driving sentiment about the stock, and whether current prices are in line with fundamentals. Recent coverage has focused on Fortive’s position in the capital goods space and how investors weigh its performance against broader industry trends, setting the stage for a closer look at valuations.
In our inspection, Fortive had a Potential Undervaluation score of 2 out of 6. We’ll go over what different valuation methods say about this score, and then think about valuation in a more holistic way, which can give you additional context beyond the numbers.
Fortive scored just 2/6 on our valuation check. See what other red flags we spotted in the full valuation breakdown.
The discounted cash flow (DCF) model estimates a company’s value by forecasting its future cash flows and discounting them to their current value. It’s essentially asking how much all those future dollars are worth at today’s prices.
For Fortive, the model used is a 2-stage free cash flow to equity approach based on cash flow forecasts in U.S. dollars. Free cash flow for the latest 12 months was approximately US$1.09b. Analyst input and extrapolated estimates suggest free cash flow of approximately $936.1 million in 2026 and $123 million in 2035, with specific forecasts of $104 million in 2028.
When all of these projected cash flows are discounted, the model yields an estimated intrinsic value of approximately $52.48 per share. Compared to the recent share price of $55.21, DCF suggests that Fortive is overvalued by approximately 5.2%. This is a relatively small gap and may fall within the range of normal estimation noise for this type of model.
Result: Approximately correct
Fortive is fairly valued based on our discounted cash flow (DCF), but this could change at any time. Track the value in your watchlist or portfolio and receive alerts on when to take action.
FTV discounted cash flow as of January 2026
Please see the Valuation section of our corporate report for more details on how we arrived at Fortive’s fair value.
For a company as profitable as Fortive, the P/E ratio is a useful shorthand for what the market is willing to pay for each dollar of earnings. It directly links share price to a business’s current profitability, which is often what drives long-term returns.
What counts as a “normal” P/E ratio depends on how investors view growth potential and risk. Higher growth or lower perceived risk can support a higher P/E ratio, while slower growth or higher risk usually means a lower, more conservative P/E ratio.
Fortive currently trades at a price-to-earnings ratio of approximately 19.82 times. This is lower than the machinery industry average (approximately 26.32 times) and peer average (approximately 25.40 times). Simply Wall St’s “fair ratio” for Fortive is 19.24x, which is their estimate of an appropriate P/E ratio after taking into account factors such as earnings growth, margins, industry, market capitalization and risk profile.
This fair ratio is more targeted than a simple comparison with peers or the industry as a whole because it is adjusted for Fortive’s own characteristics rather than treating all machinery companies equally. With a fair ratio of 19.24x and an actual P/E of 19.82x, the gap is small, indicating that Fortive is priced close to what the framework suggests is reasonable.
Result: Approximately correct
NYSE: FTV P/E ratio (as of January 2026)
P/E ratios tell a story, but what if the real opportunity lies elsewhere? Explore 1,445 companies where insiders are betting big on explosive growth.
Earlier we mentioned that there is a better way to understand valuation. Let us introduce you to narrative, which is simply your own story about a company that ties your view of its business to projections of revenue, earnings, and profits, and then to a fair value that you can compare to current prices. You can build and track these using the simple tools on the Simply Wall St community page used by millions of investors. The narrative automatically updates when new information, such as news or earnings, arrives. For Fortive, an investor might build a narrative that relies on recurring revenue, digital products, and cost discipline to support a higher fair value closer to the most bullish analyst target of $116. Another would likely focus on tariff risk, healthcare headwinds, and cautious revenue growth assumptions, and favor a fair value closer to the most bearish target of $50. This gives you a clear, quantitative way to decide what you’re willing to pay.
Do you think there’s more to Fortive’s story? Head over to our community to see what others are saying!
NYSE: FTV 1-Year Stock Price Chart
This article from Simply Wall St is general in nature. We only use unbiased methodologies to provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts, and our articles are not intended to provide financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock and does not take into account your objectives or your financial situation. Our goal is to provide you with long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Please note that our analysis may not take into account the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any of the stocks mentioned.
Companies discussed in this article include FTV.
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