Medtronic (NYSE:MDT) Trading 0.7% Higher - Here's Why

Medtronic plc (NYSE:MDT - Get Free Report)'s share price rose 0.7% on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $92.48 and last traded at $92.01. Approximately 1,220,447 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 84% from the average daily volume of 7,567,314 shares. The stock had previously closed at $91.41.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on MDT shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased 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. Barclays increased their price objective on Medtronic from $105.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded shares of Medtronic from a "sector perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and boosted their target price for the company from $98.00 to $105.00 in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Medtronic from $106.00 to $98.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on shares of Medtronic from $96.00 to $93.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $95.00.

Medtronic Trading Up 0.7 %

The company has a 50-day moving average of $84.14 and a 200 day moving average of $85.87. The company has a market cap of $117.98 billion, a PE ratio of 28.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 1.84 and a quick ratio of 1.39.

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

Medtronic Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 27th were issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 27th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.04%. Medtronic's payout ratio is currently 85.63%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Brett A. Wall sold 9,850 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.41, for a total transaction of $792,038.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 40,708 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,273,330.28. This trade represents a 19.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Medtronic

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MDT. TigerOak Management L.L.C. acquired a new stake in shares of Medtronic in the fourth quarter worth $361,000. Roxbury Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Medtronic during the 4th quarter valued at about $262,000. Hickory Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Medtronic in the 4th quarter valued at about $232,000. Manchester Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Medtronic by 4.2% in the fourth quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 5,624 shares of the medical technology company's stock worth $449,000 after buying an additional 228 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers boosted its stake in shares of Medtronic by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 2,542,938 shares of the medical technology company's stock worth $203,130,000 after buying an additional 7,596 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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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