WestEnd Advisors LLC Acquires 71,480 Shares of Medtronic PLC $MDT

Key Points

• WestEnd Advisors increased its Medtronic stake by 18.7% in the third quarter, purchasing 71,480 shares for a total of 454,423 shares valued at approximately $39.2 million. Institutional investors collectively own 82.06% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment is generally positive, with Medtronic holding a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $102.88; 18 analysts rate it Buy, nine Hold, and one Sell.
• Medtronic recently beat quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, reporting $1.45 in EPS and $9.76 billion in revenue, while paying a quarterly dividend of $0.72 per share, equivalent to a 3.1% annual yield.

WestEnd Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Medtronic PLC (NYSE:MDT - Free Report) by 18.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 454,423 shares of the medical technology company's stock after purchasing an additional 71,480 shares during the quarter. Medtronic accounts for approximately 0.9% of WestEnd Advisors LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest holding. WestEnd Advisors LLC's holdings in Medtronic were worth $39,212,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. WCM Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Medtronic during the 1st quarter valued at about $965,922,000. First Eagle Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Medtronic by 37.2% in the 2nd quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 13,783,983 shares of the medical technology company's stock valued at $1,078,321,000 after buying an additional 3,739,288 shares during the period. Cullen Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Medtronic in the 2nd quarter worth about $202,764,000. State Street Corp grew its stake in Medtronic by 2.7% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 63,399,315 shares of the medical technology company's stock worth $5,005,320,000 after acquiring an additional 1,658,301 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amundi grew its stake in Medtronic by 36.3% in the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 6,070,236 shares of the medical technology company's stock worth $525,986,000 after acquiring an additional 1,616,739 shares in the last quarter. 82.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MDT has been the topic of a number of research reports. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of Medtronic from $91.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 2nd. Barclays upgraded Medtronic to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 7th. BTIG Research lowered their price target on Medtronic from $100.00 to $99.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 12th. Wall Street Zen raised Medtronic from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, October 3rd. Finally, Mizuho set a $115.00 price objective on Medtronic in a report on Wednesday, September 2nd. Eighteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $102.88.

Insider Activity at Medtronic

In other Medtronic news, CEO Geoffrey Martha sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.00, for a total transaction of $4,750,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 277,866 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $26,397,270. This represents a 15.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Harry Kiil sold 1,483 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.65, for a total transaction of $138,882.95. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 42,186 shares in the company, valued at $3,950,718.90. This represents a 3.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 61,903 shares of company stock valued at $5,889,203 over the last quarter. 0.27% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Medtronic Stock Performance

NYSE MDT opened at $93.84 on Wednesday. Medtronic PLC has a one year low of $73.31 and a one year high of $106.33. The company has a market capitalization of $120.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.11 and a beta of 0.55. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $91.51 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $88.37.

Medtronic (NYSE:MDT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, September 1st. The medical technology company reported $1.45 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.39 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $9.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $9.55 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.26 EPS. Medtronic's revenue for the quarter was up 13.7% on a year-over-year basis. Medtronic has set its Q2 2027 guidance at 1.320-1.340 EPS and its FY 2027 guidance at 5.940-6.000 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Medtronic PLC will post 5.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Medtronic Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 16th. Investors of record on Friday, September 25th were given a dividend of $0.72 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 25th. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.1%. Medtronic's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 70.94%.

Medtronic News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Medtronic this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Medtronic’s raised guidance recently supported investor sentiment and highlighted improved expectations for earnings. The update was associated with a notable gain in the stock in the prior session. Medtronic raised guidance
• Positive Sentiment: Medtronic extended its dividend-growth record to 49 years. The long streak may appeal to income-oriented investors, although the latest increase reportedly only modestly exceeded inflation. Medtronic dividend increase
• Neutral Sentiment: The global leadless-pacemaker market is projected to expand at a 12.8% annual rate through 2036. This represents a potential long-term opportunity for Medtronic, a major cardiac-device company, but the report is an industry forecast rather than a company-specific catalyst. Global leadless pacemakers market forecast
• Neutral Sentiment: Broader medical-device executives cited rising costs, volatile markets and cybersecurity risks at an industry conference. These issues could affect sector margins and operations, but no specific new impact on Medtronic was reported. Medtech industry conference
• Negative Sentiment: Short interest surged 247.7% to approximately 139 million shares as of October 15, with 10.9% of shares sold short. The increase signals significantly more bearish positioning and may add volatility or selling pressure.
• Negative Sentiment: Piper Sandler maintained a “Hold” rating with an $85 price target, indicating limited expected upside relative to recent trading levels. Piper Sandler Medtronic rating
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts note that Medtronic’s dividend growth lags rivals Abbott and Johnson & Johnson, potentially reducing its appeal to income investors despite the lengthy payout streak. Medtronic dividend comparison

About Medtronic

Medtronic plc NYSE: MDT is a global medical technology company that develops, manufactures and distributes devices and therapies used to diagnose, treat and manage a broad range of medical conditions. Its products support healthcare providers in areas including cardiac and vascular care, diabetes, neuroscience, surgical procedures and patient monitoring.

The company's offerings include pacemakers, implantable defibrillators, heart valves and other structural heart products; insulin pumps and continuous glucose monitoring technologies; spinal and neurosurgical systems; deep-brain and spinal cord stimulation devices; surgical instruments and robotic-assisted technologies; and respiratory and patient-monitoring equipment.

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