Royal Bank of Canada Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Medical Properties Trust (NYSE:MPW) Stock

Medical Properties Trust (NYSE:MPW - Free Report) had its target price boosted by Royal Bank of Canada from $4.00 to $5.00 in a research note released on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a sector perform rating on the real estate investment trust's stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on MPW. Truist Financial dropped their price objective on Medical Properties Trust from $6.00 to $4.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Medical Properties Trust from $4.00 to $5.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Monday. StockNews.com upgraded Medical Properties Trust from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Mizuho dropped their price objective on Medical Properties Trust from $6.00 to $5.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $5.64.

Medical Properties Trust Stock Up 0.8 %

NYSE:MPW traded up $0.05 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $5.87. 8,047,273 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 13,149,236. Medical Properties Trust has a twelve month low of $3.51 and a twelve month high of $6.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a current ratio of 2.38 and a quick ratio of 2.38. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $4.80 and a 200 day moving average of $4.73. The stock has a market cap of $3.52 billion, a PE ratio of -1.39, a PEG ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 1.32.

Medical Properties Trust Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a $0.08 dividend. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. Medical Properties Trust's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -8.42%.

Insider Activity at Medical Properties Trust

In other Medical Properties Trust news, CAO James Kevin Hanna sold 11,641 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3.72, for a total transaction of $43,304.52. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 366,913 shares in the company, valued at $1,364,916.36. This trade represents a 3.08 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.53% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Indie Asset Partners LLC increased its position in Medical Properties Trust by 16.7% during the 4th quarter. Indie Asset Partners LLC now owns 15,384 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $61,000 after buying an additional 2,204 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. grew its holdings in shares of Medical Properties Trust by 6.6% during the 4th quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 39,252 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $155,000 after purchasing an additional 2,438 shares in the last quarter. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV grew its holdings in shares of Medical Properties Trust by 5.6% during the 4th quarter. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV now owns 49,953 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $186,000 after purchasing an additional 2,661 shares in the last quarter. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Medical Properties Trust by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. now owns 111,490 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $440,000 after purchasing an additional 2,948 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vanderbilt University grew its holdings in shares of Medical Properties Trust by 7.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanderbilt University now owns 44,813 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $177,000 after purchasing an additional 3,117 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 71.79% of the company's stock.

About Medical Properties Trust

Medical Properties Trust, Inc is a self-advised real estate investment trust formed in 2003 to acquire and develop net-leased hospital facilities. From its inception in Birmingham, Alabama, the Company has grown to become one of the world's largest owners of hospital real estate with 441 facilities and approximately 44,000 licensed beds as of September 30, 2023.