Medical Properties Trust Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NYSE:MPT)

Key Points

• Options activity increased: Investors bought 15,473 call options in Medical Properties Trust, 12% above the average volume.
• Shares fell to $3.43 and remain near their 12-month low of $3.39. Analysts maintain a consensus “Sell” rating with a $4.15 price target.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.09 per share, equivalent to a 10.5% annualized yield, despite weak profitability and a negative payout ratio.

Medical Properties Trust, Inc. (NYSE:MPT - Get Free Report) saw unusually large options trading activity on Friday. Stock investors acquired 15,473 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of 12% compared to the average volume of 13,801 call options.

Medical Properties Trust Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MPT traded down $0.17 on Friday, hitting $3.43. 4,789,009 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,688,919. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.16, a current ratio of 3.12 and a quick ratio of 3.12. Medical Properties Trust has a 12 month low of $3.39 and a 12 month high of $6.47. The company has a market capitalization of $2.05 billion, a PE ratio of -57.17 and a beta of 1.40. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $4.28.

Medical Properties Trust (NYSE:MPT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, August 10th. The company reported $0.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.15. The company had revenue of $259.28 million for the quarter. Medical Properties Trust had a negative return on equity of 0.66% and a negative net margin of 2.96%.The company's revenue for the quarter was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Medical Properties Trust will post 0.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Medical Properties Trust Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 8th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 10th will be given a dividend of $0.09 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 10th. This represents a $0.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 10.5%. Medical Properties Trust's dividend payout ratio is currently -600.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MPT has been the topic of several research reports. Weiss Ratings lowered Medical Properties Trust from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "sell (d)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 18th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Medical Properties Trust from $5.00 to $3.80 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, September 1st. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of Medical Properties Trust from $5.00 to $4.50 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Sell" and a consensus price target of $4.15.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Medical Properties Trust during the second quarter worth about $347,673,000. Allianz Asset Management GmbH bought a new position in shares of Medical Properties Trust during the 2nd quarter valued at about $33,903,000. Advisors Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Medical Properties Trust in the second quarter valued at approximately $30,483,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Medical Properties Trust in the second quarter valued at approximately $28,285,000. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG acquired a new stake in Medical Properties Trust in the 2nd quarter valued at $25,302,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.79% of the company's stock.

About Medical Properties Trust

Medical Properties Trust, Inc NYSE: MPT is a real estate investment trust focused on healthcare facilities. The company acquires, develops, owns and leases properties used by healthcare providers, with an emphasis on hospitals and other facilities that deliver essential medical services.

Medical Properties Trust has historically invested primarily in acute-care hospitals, behavioral health facilities, inpatient rehabilitation hospitals and other specialized healthcare properties. Its real estate is generally leased to hospital and healthcare operators under long-term arrangements, while its investments have also included mortgage loans and other healthcare-related financing.

Founded in 2003 and headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama, Medical Properties Trust has built a portfolio spanning the United States and selected international markets, including the United Kingdom and other parts of Europe.

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