Medline $MDLN Stock: Washington Trust Advisors Inc. Raises Holdings

Key Points

• Washington Trust Advisors increased its Medline stake by 22.7% in the third quarter, owning 167,085 shares valued at approximately $5.8 million. Several other institutional investors also expanded their positions.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with Medline receiving a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $46.54, despite several recent target-price cuts.
• Medline shares fell 2.3% to $34.09, while a major shareholder sold more than 2 million shares for about $73.2 million. The company nevertheless beat quarterly earnings expectations, reporting $0.50 EPS versus the $0.32 consensus.

Washington Trust Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Medline (NASDAQ:MDLN - Free Report) by 22.7% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 167,085 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 30,906 shares during the period. Washington Trust Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Medline were worth $5,798,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MDLN. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its holdings in Medline by 8.4% in the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 11,451,861 shares of the company's stock worth $506,546,000 after acquiring an additional 887,240 shares in the last quarter. Banque Pictet & Cie SA grew its stake in Medline by 2.0% in the third quarter. Banque Pictet & Cie SA now owns 7,455,089 shares of the company's stock valued at $258,692,000 after acquiring an additional 142,939 shares during the period. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund increased its holdings in shares of Medline by 233.3% during the first quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 5,000,000 shares of the company's stock valued at $222,500,000 after acquiring an additional 3,500,000 shares in the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Medline by 39,404.0% during the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 3,504,006 shares of the company's stock valued at $155,929,000 after acquiring an additional 3,495,136 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Unisphere Establishment increased its holdings in shares of Medline by 50.5% during the first quarter. Unisphere Establishment now owns 2,482,500 shares of the company's stock valued at $110,471,000 after acquiring an additional 832,500 shares in the last quarter.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. TD Cowen cut their target price on Medline from $53.00 to $45.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 10th. UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of Medline from $45.00 to $43.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, September 25th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Medline from $45.00 to $34.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Citigroup upgraded shares of Medline to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, BTIG Research reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $55.00 price objective on shares of Medline in a research note on Thursday, August 27th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-one have issued a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Medline currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $46.54.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, major shareholder Private Ltd Gic sold 2,088,987 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.05, for a total value of $73,218,994.35. Following the transaction, the insider owned 16,453,806 shares in the company, valued at $576,705,900.30. The trade was a 11.27% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 10,787,572 shares of company stock valued at $382,784,591. Company insiders own 0.81% of the company's stock.

Medline Stock Down 2.3%

Shares of MDLN stock traded down $0.79 on Friday, hitting $34.09. The stock had a trading volume of 7,439,611 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,590,693. The business has a 50 day moving average of $34.70 and a 200 day moving average of $37.90. The stock has a market cap of $44.82 billion and a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 4.33 and a quick ratio of 2.61. Medline has a 12-month low of $31.49 and a 12-month high of $50.88.

Medline (NASDAQ:MDLN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.32 by $0.18. The firm had revenue of $7.68 billion for the quarter. As a group, analysts expect that Medline will post 1.51 EPS for the current year.

About Medline

Medline Industries, Inc is a medical-supply manufacturer and distributor headquartered in Northfield, Illinois. The company provides products and supply-chain services to healthcare organizations, including hospitals, ambulatory surgery centers, physician offices, long-term care facilities, home health providers and other care settings.

Its product portfolio includes medical-surgical supplies, surgical and operating-room products, patient-care items, examination gloves, protective apparel, laboratory products, respiratory-care equipment, durable medical equipment and products for infection prevention.

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