JPMorgan Chase & Co. Lowers Stake in Smith & Nephew plc (NYSE:SNN)

JPMorgan Chase & Co. lessened its position in Smith & Nephew plc (NYSE:SNN - Free Report) by 57.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 14,020 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock after selling 18,957 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s holdings in Smith & Nephew were worth $345,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in SNN. Principal Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in Smith & Nephew by 87.6% in the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,480 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 691 shares in the last quarter. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Smith & Nephew in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Hara Capital LLC raised its position in Smith & Nephew by 391.4% in the fourth quarter. Hara Capital LLC now owns 2,457 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $60,000 after acquiring an additional 1,957 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in Smith & Nephew by 31.8% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,975 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $73,000 after buying an additional 718 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in Smith & Nephew by 26.0% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 5,871 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $144,000 after buying an additional 1,213 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 25.64% of the company's stock.

Smith & Nephew Trading Up 0.5 %

NYSE SNN traded up $0.14 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $28.47. 67,276 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 812,471. The business's 50 day moving average is $27.62 and its 200-day moving average is $26.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 2.51. Smith & Nephew plc has a 12-month low of $23.69 and a 12-month high of $31.72. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 0.68.

Smith & Nephew Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 28th will be issued a dividend of $0.447 per share. This is a positive change from Smith & Nephew's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.29. This represents a dividend yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 28th. Smith & Nephew's dividend payout ratio is presently 41.20%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. UBS Group cut shares of Smith & Nephew from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Hsbc Global Res cut Smith & Nephew from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price target on Smith & Nephew from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. StockNews.com raised Smith & Nephew from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, HSBC downgraded shares of Smith & Nephew from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $28.00.

Smith & Nephew Company Profile

Smith & Nephew plc engages in the development, manufacture, marketing, and sale of medical devices. It operates through the following segments: Orthopaedics, Sports Medicine and ENT, and Advanced Wound Management. The Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine and ENT segment consists of the following businesses: knee implants, hip implants, other reconstruction, trauma, sports medicine joint repair, arthroscopic enabling technologies, and ENT.