Principal Financial Group Inc. Acquires 9,619 Shares of CONMED Corporation (NYSE:CNMD)

Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of CONMED Corporation (NYSE:CNMD - Free Report) by 1.5% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 634,677 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 9,619 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 2.05% of CONMED worth $38,328,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Aquatic Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in CONMED during the fourth quarter worth approximately $82,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in CONMED by 81.4% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,317 shares of the company's stock worth $80,000 after acquiring an additional 591 shares during the last quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its position in CONMED by 6.8% during the fourth quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 3,228 shares of the company's stock worth $221,000 after acquiring an additional 205 shares during the last quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in CONMED during the fourth quarter worth approximately $222,000. Finally, PEAK6 LLC acquired a new stake in CONMED during the fourth quarter worth approximately $228,000.

CONMED Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CNMD traded up $0.66 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $53.57. 440,428 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 446,698. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $55.74 and its 200-day moving average price is $59.77. The stock has a market cap of $1.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.10, a PEG ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 1.20. CONMED Corporation has a one year low of $46.00 and a one year high of $78.19. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 2.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91.

CONMED (NYSE:CNMD - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported $0.95 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.81 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $321.26 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $313.38 million. CONMED had a net margin of 9.02% and a return on equity of 14.36%. CONMED's revenue for the quarter was up 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.79 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that CONMED Corporation will post 4.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CONMED Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, June 13th were issued a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 13th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.49%. CONMED's payout ratio is 21.05%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CNMD has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of CONMED from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Stifel Nicolaus downgraded shares of CONMED from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and dropped their price target for the company from $75.00 to $55.00 in a research report on Monday, April 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of CONMED from $70.00 to $58.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of CONMED from $70.00 to $57.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Needham & Company LLC downgraded shares of CONMED from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $61.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Thursday, June 12th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $62.20.

Insider Transactions at CONMED

In other news, Director Charles Farkas sold 4,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.94, for a total transaction of $227,760.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 16,346 shares in the company, valued at approximately $930,741.24. This represents a 19.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 3.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About CONMED

CONMED Corporation, a medical technology company, develops, manufactures, and sells surgical devices and related equipment for surgical procedures worldwide. The company offers orthopedic surgery products, including BioBrace, TruShot with Y-Knot All-In-One Soft Tissue Fixation System, Y-knot All-Suture Anchors, and Agro Knotless Suture Anchors, which provide clinical solutions to orthopedic surgeons for the augmentation and repair of soft tissue injuries, as well as provides supporting products that enable surgeons to perform minimally invasive sports medicine surgeries.