Smith & Nephew plc (NYSE:SNN) Shares Sold by Russell Investments Group Ltd.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. reduced its stake in shares of Smith & Nephew plc (NYSE:SNN - Free Report) by 39.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 235,440 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock after selling 155,208 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned about 0.05% of Smith & Nephew worth $5,787,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of SNN. Sei Investments Co. increased its position in shares of Smith & Nephew by 229.8% during the fourth quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 75,215 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $1,849,000 after purchasing an additional 52,411 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Smith & Nephew by 29.3% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 27,199 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $847,000 after buying an additional 6,164 shares during the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp acquired a new position in Smith & Nephew during the third quarter worth approximately $1,258,000. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in Smith & Nephew by 26.0% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 5,871 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $144,000 after buying an additional 1,213 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ABC Arbitrage SA acquired a new stake in shares of Smith & Nephew in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $4,847,000. 25.64% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Smith & Nephew from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Canaccord Genuity Group restated a "hold" rating and issued a $27.00 price objective on shares of Smith & Nephew in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Finally, UBS Group downgraded shares of Smith & Nephew from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Smith & Nephew currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $27.00.

Smith & Nephew Stock Performance

NYSE:SNN traded up $0.21 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $25.90. The stock had a trading volume of 691,095 shares, compared to its average volume of 836,294. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The stock has a market cap of $11.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.99, a P/E/G ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 0.71. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $27.45 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $26.46. Smith & Nephew plc has a 12-month low of $23.69 and a 12-month high of $31.72.

Smith & Nephew Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 28th will be issued a $0.447 dividend. This is an increase from Smith & Nephew's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 28th. This represents a dividend yield of 2.5%. Smith & Nephew's payout ratio is presently 41.20%.

Smith & Nephew Company Profile

Smith & Nephew plc engages in the development, manufacture, marketing, and sale of medical devices. It operates through the following segments: Orthopaedics, Sports Medicine and ENT, and Advanced Wound Management. The Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine and ENT segment consists of the following businesses: knee implants, hip implants, other reconstruction, trauma, sports medicine joint repair, arthroscopic enabling technologies, and ENT.