Medtronic PLC (NYSE:MDT) Shares Sold by Prudential PLC

Key Points

• Prudential PLC reduced its stake in Medtronic PLC by 46.0%, now owning 20,618 shares worth approximately $1.85 million at the end of the last reporting period.
• Several institutional investors, including Brighton Jones LLC and Demars Financial Group LLC, significantly increased their holdings in Medtronic during the fourth quarter, indicating a growing interest in the company.
• Medtronic declared a quarterly dividend increase to $0.71, up from $0.70, reflecting a 3.1% yield and signaling confidence in its financial stability.

Prudential PLC reduced its position in shares of Medtronic PLC (NYSE:MDT - Free Report) by 46.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 20,618 shares of the medical technology company's stock after selling 17,590 shares during the quarter. Prudential PLC's holdings in Medtronic were worth $1,853,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of MDT. Burkett Financial Services LLC boosted its position in shares of Medtronic by 185.0% in 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 in the last quarter. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Medtronic in the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Columbia River Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Medtronic in the 1st quarter worth $28,000. Optiver Holding B.V. acquired a new stake in shares of Medtronic in the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Hughes Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Medtronic in the 1st quarter worth $32,000. 82.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Leerink Partnrs raised Medtronic to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, June 16th. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on Medtronic from $103.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Leerink Partners assumed coverage on Medtronic in a research report on Monday, June 16th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $110.00 price objective for the company. Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $107.00 price objective (up previously from $98.00) on shares of Medtronic in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, BTIG Research reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of Medtronic in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Medtronic presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $98.19.

Medtronic Price Performance

Shares of Medtronic stock traded up $1.00 on Friday, hitting $92.98. The company's stock had a trading volume of 6,640,563 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,445,581. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 1.42 and a current ratio of 1.85. Medtronic PLC has a 1 year low of $79.29 and a 1 year high of $96.25. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $89.32 and a 200-day moving average price of $87.98. The company has a market capitalization of $119.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 0.80.

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

Medtronic Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 26th will be issued a dividend of $0.71 per share. This represents a $2.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 26th. Medtronic's payout ratio is currently 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.