Medtronic (NYSE:MDT) Cut to "Hold" at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Medtronic has been downgraded from a "buy" to a "hold" rating by Wall Street Zen, reflecting a more cautious outlook on the company's stock.
• Despite the downgrade, Medtronic's stock rose 2.3% on Friday, reaching $97.63, with significant trading volume.
• Analysts have varying perspectives on Medtronic, with one suggesting a "Strong Buy" rating, while the average price target is set at $102.27.

Medtronic (NYSE:MDT - Get Free Report) was downgraded by research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a note issued to investors on Friday.

A number of other equities research analysts have also commented on the company. UBS Group raised their price objective on Medtronic from $94.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and set a $107.00 price objective (up from $98.00) on shares of Medtronic in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Wolfe Research raised Medtronic from an "underperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research report on Monday, June 30th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Medtronic in a research report on Thursday, August 14th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein upped their target price on Medtronic from $97.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $102.27.

Medtronic Stock Up 2.3%

NYSE MDT traded up $2.15 during trading on Friday, reaching $97.63. 8,573,067 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,557,151. Medtronic has a fifty-two week low of $79.29 and a fifty-two week high of $97.94. The firm has a market capitalization of $125.23 billion, a PE ratio of 26.90, a P/E/G ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a current ratio of 2.01, a quick ratio of 1.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $92.94 and its 200-day simple moving average is $88.50.

Medtronic (NYSE:MDT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 19th. The medical technology company reported $1.26 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.23 by $0.03. Medtronic had a return on equity of 14.61% and a net margin of 13.63%.The firm had revenue of $8.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.37 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.23 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 7.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Medtronic has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.600-5.660 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Medtronic will post 5.46 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Medtronic

In related news, Director William R. Jellison acquired 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 25th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $92.37 per share, with a total value of $230,925.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 5,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $461,850. The trade was a 100.00% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Harry Skip Kiil sold 8,605 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.58, for a total value of $788,045.90. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 35,615 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,261,621.70. This represents a 19.46% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.26% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Medtronic by 1.5% during the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 126,909,406 shares of the medical technology company's stock valued at $11,062,693,000 after acquiring an additional 1,895,165 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Medtronic by 1.1% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 28,227,006 shares of the medical technology company's stock valued at $2,448,699,000 after buying an additional 310,684 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its holdings in Medtronic by 7.0% in the 1st quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 22,278,023 shares of the medical technology company's stock valued at $2,001,903,000 after buying an additional 1,461,841 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in Medtronic by 2.9% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 21,275,850 shares of the medical technology company's stock valued at $1,854,616,000 after buying an additional 595,549 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG grew its holdings in Medtronic by 3.1% in the 1st quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 19,009,795 shares of the medical technology company's stock valued at $1,708,220,000 after buying an additional 566,155 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.06% of the company's stock.

About Medtronic

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.

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