Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 1,167,322 Shares of Medtronic plc (NYSE:MDT)

Principal Financial Group Inc. trimmed its stake in Medtronic plc (NYSE:MDT - Free Report) by 44.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,442,595 shares of the medical technology company's stock after selling 1,167,322 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.11% of Medtronic worth $115,235,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Fortitude Family Office LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Medtronic in the third quarter valued at about $27,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in Medtronic in the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Medtronic during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Stephens Consulting LLC raised its holdings in Medtronic by 145.7% during the 4th quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 344 shares of the medical technology company's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares during the last quarter. Finally, J. Stern & Co. LLP acquired a new position in shares of Medtronic in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. 82.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Brett A. Wall sold 12,437 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.00, for a total transaction of $1,119,330.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 40,979 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,688,110. This represents a 23.28 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Medtronic Stock Up 2.3 %

Shares of MDT traded up $2.01 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $89.95. The stock had a trading volume of 11,762,886 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,605,718. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $85.93 and a 200 day simple moving average of $87.03. Medtronic plc has a 12 month low of $75.96 and a 12 month high of $93.08. The company has a current ratio of 1.90, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. The company has a market capitalization of $115.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.34, a P/E/G ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 0.84.

Medtronic (NYSE:MDT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The medical technology company reported $1.39 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.36 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $8.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.33 billion. Medtronic had a return on equity of 14.07% and a net margin of 12.83%. Equities research analysts predict that Medtronic plc will post 5.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Medtronic Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 10th. Investors of record on Friday, December 27th were issued a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.11%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 27th. Medtronic's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 85.11%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on MDT shares. Truist Financial decreased their price objective on shares of Medtronic from $93.00 to $89.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Medtronic in a report on Wednesday. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Medtronic from $85.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Royal Bank of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and set a $105.00 target price on shares of Medtronic in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Medtronic from $99.00 to $96.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $95.20.

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.