Welch & Forbes LLC Trims Stake in Medtronic plc (NYSE:MDT)

Welch & Forbes LLC cut its stake in Medtronic plc (NYSE:MDT - Free Report) by 17.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 83,834 shares of the medical technology company's stock after selling 18,116 shares during the period. Welch & Forbes LLC's holdings in Medtronic were worth $6,906,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of MDT. Morgan Stanley raised its holdings in Medtronic by 9.2% in the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 23,777,808 shares of the medical technology company's stock worth $1,863,229,000 after purchasing an additional 1,994,123 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in Medtronic by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 13,622,933 shares of the medical technology company's stock valued at $1,067,493,000 after acquiring an additional 285,819 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Medtronic by 0.7% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 10,988,289 shares of the medical technology company's stock worth $843,979,000 after purchasing an additional 79,660 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in shares of Medtronic by 6.7% during the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 10,297,135 shares of the medical technology company's stock valued at $806,883,000 after purchasing an additional 649,367 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Eagle Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Medtronic by 10.8% in the 3rd quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 6,088,880 shares of the medical technology company's stock worth $477,125,000 after purchasing an additional 592,849 shares in the last quarter. 82.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Medtronic Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE:MDT traded up $0.12 on Tuesday, reaching $81.88. The company had a trading volume of 4,939,706 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,184,942. The firm has a market capitalization of $108.72 billion, a PE ratio of 26.08, a PEG ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a current ratio of 2.30, a quick ratio of 1.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. Medtronic plc has a 52-week low of $68.84 and a 52-week high of $91.00. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $83.01 and its 200-day simple moving average is $81.69.

Medtronic (NYSE:MDT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 20th. The medical technology company reported $1.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.26 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $8.09 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.95 billion. Medtronic had a return on equity of 13.71% and a net margin of 13.00%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.30 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Medtronic plc will post 5.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Medtronic Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 22nd were given a dividend of $0.69 per share. This represents a $2.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.37%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 21st. Medtronic's payout ratio is presently 87.90%.

Insider Transactions at Medtronic

In related news, EVP Sean Salmon sold 30,695 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.13, for a total transaction of $2,613,065.35. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 48,289 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,110,842.57. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, EVP Sean Salmon sold 30,695 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.13, for a total value of $2,613,065.35. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 48,289 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,110,842.57. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Michael Marinaro sold 854 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.14, for a total value of $71,001.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 27,925 shares in the company, valued at $2,321,684.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MDT has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Oppenheimer upped their price target on shares of Medtronic from $89.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 21st. Mizuho raised their target price on Medtronic from $95.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. Truist Financial raised their target price on shares of Medtronic from $87.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 21st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $92.00 target price on shares of Medtronic in a research report on Wednesday, February 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $94.91.

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.

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