Dover Corporation DOV announced that it completed the previously announced sale of its De-Sta-Co (“DESTACO”) business to the industrial and automotive supplier, Stabilus SE. This move will help DOV focus its efforts and capital deployment on growing its core platforms.

In October 2023, Dover inked a deal with Stabilus to sell its DESTACO business for $680 million in enterprise value.

DOV acquired DESTACO in 1962. It creates, manufactures and sells workholding and automation components for industrial automation. The business will gain from Stabilus' focus on industrial automation, and a robust go-to-market channel in industrial and automotive applications.

In 2022, DESTACO generated revenues of $213 million and was part of Dover's Engineered Products segment. The Engineered Products segment’s revenues rose 0.8% year over year to $529 million in the fourth quarter of 2023. The segment’s adjusted EBITDA increased 13.1% year over year to $125 million.

Dover reported fourth-quarter 2023 adjusted earnings per share (EPS) from continuing operations of $2.45, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.44. The bottom line increased 13% year over year, aided by the company’s cost-containment actions.

Total revenues in the fourth quarter decreased 1.5% year over year to $2.11 billion. The top line missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.17 billion. Organic growth was a negative 3% in the quarter.

Price Performance

Dover’s shares have gained 17% in the past year compared with the industry’s growth of 24.1%.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

Zacks Rank and Stocks to Consider

DOV currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

Some better-ranked stocks from the Industrial Products sector are Proto Labs, Inc. PRLB, Applied Industrial Technologies AIT and Cadre Holdings, Inc. CDRE. PRLB currently sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), and AIT and CDRE carry a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Proto Labs’ 2024 earnings is pegged at $1.62 per share. The consensus estimate for 2024 earnings has moved 11% north in the past 60 days and suggests year-over-year growth of 1.9%. The company has a trailing four-quarter average earnings surprise of 42.2%. PRLB shares have gained 15.7% in the past year.

Applied Industrial has an average trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 13.9%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for AIT’s 2024 earnings is pinned at $9.43 per share, which indicates year-over-year growth of 7.8%. Estimates have been unchanged in the past 60 days. The company’s shares have gained 43.3% in the past year.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Cadre Holdings’ 2024 earnings is pegged at $1.15 per share. The consensus estimate for 2024 earnings has moved 6% north in the past 60 days and suggests year-over-year growth of 16.7%. The company has a trailing four-quarter average earnings surprise of 33%. CDRE shares have gained 72% in the past year.