Tredje AP fonden Sells 150,000 Shares of Medtronic PLC (NYSE:MDT)

Key Points

• Tredje AP fonden has decreased its holdings in Medtronic PLC by 48.0%, now owning 162,717 shares after selling 150,000 shares during the first quarter.
• Medtronic recently reported quarterly earnings of $1.62 EPS, exceeding analysts' expectations of $1.58 EPS, with revenues of $8.93 billion.
• The company has increased its quarterly dividend to $0.71 per share, reflecting a 3.07% dividend yield and an annualized payout of $2.84.

Tredje AP fonden decreased its holdings in Medtronic PLC (NYSE:MDT - Free Report) by 48.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 162,717 shares of the medical technology company's stock after selling 150,000 shares during the quarter. Tredje AP fonden's holdings in Medtronic were worth $14,622,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

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

Medtronic Stock Down 1.0%

Shares of Medtronic stock traded down $0.93 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $89.31. The company's stock had a trading volume of 6,507,377 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,483,095. Medtronic PLC has a 1-year low of $79.29 and a 1-year high of $96.25. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $114.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.67, a PEG ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.80. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $87.59 and a 200-day simple moving average of $87.80.

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

Medtronic Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 11th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 27th were paid a $0.71 dividend. This is a boost from Medtronic's previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 27th. Medtronic's payout ratio is presently 78.45%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MDT has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Leerink Partnrs raised shares of Medtronic to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, June 16th. BTIG Research reiterated a "neutral" rating on shares of Medtronic in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Medtronic in a research report on Friday, June 6th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on shares of Medtronic from $103.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $107.00 price objective (up previously from $98.00) on shares of Medtronic in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $98.19.

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.