Townsquare Capital LLC Sells 51,613 Shares of Medtronic PLC (NYSE:MDT)

Key Points

• Townsquare Capital LLC reduced its holdings in Medtronic PLC by 13.8%, selling 51,613 shares during the first quarter, resulting in ownership of 321,651 shares valued at approximately $28.9 million.
• Medtronic's recent quarterly earnings exceeded expectations with earnings per share of $1.62 and revenues of $8.93 billion, reflecting a 3.9% increase compared to the previous year.
• The company recently increased its quarterly dividend to $0.71 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend of $2.84 and a yield of 3.1%.

Townsquare Capital LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Medtronic PLC (NYSE:MDT - Free Report) by 13.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 321,651 shares of the medical technology company's stock after selling 51,613 shares during the quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC's holdings in Medtronic were worth $28,903,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in MDT. Burkett Financial Services LLC lifted its holdings in Medtronic by 185.0% during the 1st quarter. Burkett Financial Services LLC now owns 285 shares of the medical technology company's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 185 shares during the last quarter. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Medtronic during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Columbia River Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Medtronic during the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,000. Optiver Holding B.V. acquired a new stake in Medtronic during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Hughes Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in Medtronic during the 1st quarter worth approximately $32,000. 82.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently weighed in on MDT. Truist Financial dropped their price target on Medtronic from $93.00 to $90.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 11th. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on Medtronic from $103.00 to $106.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Medtronic in a report on Friday, June 6th. William Blair raised Medtronic to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, July 11th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price objective on Medtronic from $105.00 to $101.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $98.19.

Medtronic Price Performance

Shares of MDT traded up $1.70 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $92.94. The company's stock had a trading volume of 6,636,861 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,924,519. Medtronic PLC has a one year low of $79.29 and a one year high of $96.25. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $88.65 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $87.93. The company has a quick ratio of 1.42, a current ratio of 1.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $119.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.80.

Medtronic (NYSE:MDT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 21st. The medical technology company reported $1.62 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.58 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $8.93 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.81 billion. Medtronic had a return on equity of 14.54% and a net margin of 13.90%. Medtronic's quarterly revenue was up 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.46 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Medtronic PLC will post 5.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Medtronic Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 11th. Investors of record on Friday, June 27th were given a dividend of $0.71 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 27th. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.1%. This is an increase from Medtronic's previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. Medtronic's dividend payout ratio is presently 78.45%.

Medtronic Profile

Medtronic plc develops, manufactures, and sells device-based medical therapies to healthcare systems, physicians, clinicians, and patients worldwide. Its Cardiovascular Portfolio segment offers implantable cardiac pacemakers, cardioverter defibrillators, and cardiac resynchronization therapy devices; cardiac ablation products; insertable cardiac monitor systems; TYRX products; and remote monitoring and patient-centered software.