Balyasny Asset Management L.P. Sells 96,285 Shares of Smith & Nephew plc (NYSE:SNN)

Balyasny Asset Management L.P. decreased its stake in shares of Smith & Nephew plc (NYSE:SNN - Free Report) by 56.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 75,320 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock after selling 96,285 shares during the period. Balyasny Asset Management L.P.'s holdings in Smith & Nephew were worth $1,851,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Sei Investments Co. boosted its holdings in Smith & Nephew by 229.8% in the 4th quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 75,215 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $1,849,000 after purchasing an additional 52,411 shares during the period. Townsquare Capital LLC boosted its holdings in Smith & Nephew by 19.0% in the 4th quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 17,557 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $432,000 after purchasing an additional 2,798 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in Smith & Nephew by 26.0% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 5,871 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $144,000 after purchasing an additional 1,213 shares during the period. ABC Arbitrage SA bought a new stake in Smith & Nephew in the 4th quarter valued at about $4,847,000. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in Smith & Nephew by 87.6% in the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,480 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 691 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 25.64% of the company's stock.

Smith & Nephew Stock Performance

Shares of Smith & Nephew stock opened at $28.43 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $27.52 and a 200-day moving average of $26.25. Smith & Nephew plc has a 1-year low of $23.69 and a 1-year high of $31.72. The company has a current ratio of 2.51, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The company has a market cap of $12.45 billion, a PE ratio of 13.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 0.68.

Smith & Nephew Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 28th will be issued a dividend of $0.447 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 28th. This is an increase from Smith & Nephew's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.29. Smith & Nephew's dividend payout ratio is 41.20%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have issued reports on SNN. Hsbc Global Res downgraded shares of Smith & Nephew from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price objective on shares of Smith & Nephew from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. HSBC downgraded shares of Smith & Nephew from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. UBS Group downgraded shares of Smith & Nephew from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Smith & Nephew from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Smith & Nephew has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $28.00.

Smith & Nephew Profile

Smith & Nephew plc engages in the development, manufacture, marketing, and sale of medical devices. It operates through the following segments: Orthopaedics, Sports Medicine and ENT, and Advanced Wound Management. The Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine and ENT segment consists of the following businesses: knee implants, hip implants, other reconstruction, trauma, sports medicine joint repair, arthroscopic enabling technologies, and ENT.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.