Medical Properties Trust (NYSE:MPT) Shares Down 4.4% - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• Medical Properties Trust fell 4.4% in mid-day trading to $1.73, below its 50-day and 200-day moving averages.
• Analyst sentiment is bearish: the consensus rating is “Strong Sell”, with an average price target of $2.68; several firms recently downgraded the stock or cut their targets.
• The company missed quarterly EPS estimates, reporting $0.11 versus $0.13 expected. Its quarterly dividend of $0.09 per share equates to a 20% annualized yield, with an 87.8% payout ratio.

Medical Properties Trust, Inc. (NYSE:MPT - Get Free Report)'s stock price was down 4.4% during mid-day trading on Monday. The company traded as low as $1.7150 and last traded at $1.73. 7,674,179 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 8% from the average daily volume of 8,382,151 shares. The stock had previously closed at $1.81.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on MPT shares. BNP Paribas Exane downgraded shares of Medical Properties Trust from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $2.25 price objective for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, November 3rd. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Medical Properties Trust from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "sell (d)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 18th. Royal Bank Of Canada downgraded Medical Properties Trust from a "sector perform" rating to an "underperform" rating and lowered their price target for the company from $4.50 to $2.00 in a report on Friday, October 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Medical Properties Trust from $5.00 to $3.80 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, September 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Strong Sell" and an average target price of $2.68.

Medical Properties Trust Stock Performance

The company's fifty day simple moving average is $3.21 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $4.28. The company has a market capitalization of $1.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 4.39 and a beta of 1.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00, a quick ratio of 3.12 and a current ratio of 3.92.

Medical Properties Trust (NYSE:MPT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The company reported $0.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.13 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $250.14 million during the quarter. Medical Properties Trust had a net margin of 24.14% and a return on equity of 5.45%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Medical Properties Trust, Inc. will post 0.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Medical Properties Trust Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 8th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 10th were given a dividend of $0.09 per share. This represents a $0.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 20.0%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, September 10th. Medical Properties Trust's payout ratio is 87.80%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Hantz Financial Services Inc. acquired a new stake in Medical Properties Trust during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $664,000. Channel Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Medical Properties Trust in the 3rd quarter valued at $54,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. bought a new stake in Medical Properties Trust in the 3rd quarter valued at $669,000. Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. acquired a new position in Medical Properties Trust in the 3rd quarter worth $65,000. Finally, Maryland State Retirement & Pension System bought a new position in Medical Properties Trust during the 3rd quarter worth about $469,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.79% of the company's stock.

About Medical Properties Trust

Medical Properties Trust is a real estate investment trust that owns and invests in healthcare facilities, with a primary focus on hospitals. The company leases its properties to healthcare operators and may provide financing related to the acquisition or development of medical facilities.

Founded in 2003, Medical Properties Trust has built a portfolio of properties serving acute-care, behavioral health, rehabilitation and other healthcare needs. Its investments have included facilities in the United States and international markets.

The company's business model centers on owning healthcare real estate and generating income through leases and other property-related investments.

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