Medtronic (NYSE:MDT) Trading Down 1.5% - Time to Sell?

Medtronic plc (NYSE:MDT - Get Free Report) dropped 1.5% during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $81.20 and last traded at $81.44. Approximately 1,844,192 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 71% from the average daily volume of 6,456,499 shares. The stock had previously closed at $82.68.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on MDT shares. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded shares of Medtronic from a "sector perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and raised their price objective for the company from $98.00 to $105.00 in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Barclays boosted their price objective on Medtronic from $105.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Medtronic from $99.00 to $96.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Medtronic from $100.00 to $104.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Citigroup upped their price target on Medtronic from $85.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $95.00.

Medtronic Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.84, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $84.17 and its 200-day moving average price is $84.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $103.38 billion, a PE ratio of 24.65, a PEG ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 0.83.

Medtronic (NYSE:MDT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 19th. The medical technology company reported $1.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.25 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $8.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.27 billion. Medtronic had a return on equity of 13.79% and a net margin of 13.00%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.25 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Medtronic plc will post 5.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Medtronic Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 27th will be given a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.47%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 27th. Medtronic's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 85.63%.

Insider Transactions at Medtronic

In other Medtronic news, EVP Brett A. Wall sold 9,850 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.41, for a total value of $792,038.50. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 40,708 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,273,330.28. This represents a 19.48 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Medtronic

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in MDT. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its position in Medtronic by 436.7% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 7,343,385 shares of the medical technology company's stock valued at $661,125,000 after buying an additional 5,975,110 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can boosted its holdings in shares of Medtronic by 65.0% in the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 4,546,819 shares of the medical technology company's stock valued at $406,122,000 after purchasing an additional 1,790,483 shares during the period. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund grew its stake in Medtronic by 1,195.9% in the second quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 1,837,600 shares of the medical technology company's stock worth $144,637,000 after purchasing an additional 1,695,800 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its position in Medtronic by 58.4% during the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 3,850,914 shares of the medical technology company's stock valued at $346,705,000 after purchasing an additional 1,420,263 shares in the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Medtronic by 8,908.6% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,298,415 shares of the medical technology company's stock worth $116,896,000 after buying an additional 1,284,002 shares during the period. 82.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.