Smith & Nephew plc (NYSE:SNN) Given Consensus Rating of "Hold" by Brokerages

Shares of Smith & Nephew plc (NYSE:SNN - Get Free Report) have been given an average recommendation of "Hold" by the five brokerages that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation. The average 12-month price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $27.00.

Several equities research analysts have commented on SNN shares. UBS Group lowered Smith & Nephew from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. HSBC lowered Smith & Nephew from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday. Canaccord Genuity Group restated a "hold" rating and issued a $27.00 price objective on shares of Smith & Nephew in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Smith & Nephew from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th.

Smith & Nephew Stock Performance

NYSE:SNN traded down $0.35 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $26.65. The company had a trading volume of 928,869 shares, compared to its average volume of 823,199. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 2.51 and a quick ratio of 1.11. Smith & Nephew has a 1-year low of $23.69 and a 1-year high of $31.72. The business's 50 day moving average price is $27.52 and its 200-day moving average price is $26.32. The firm has a market cap of $11.67 billion, a PE ratio of 12.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 0.71.

Smith & Nephew Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 28th will be given a dividend of $0.447 per share. This is a positive change 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 dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 41.20%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Principal Securities Inc. lifted its position in shares of Smith & Nephew by 87.6% during the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,480 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 691 shares in the last quarter. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Smith & Nephew during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $41,000. National Bank of Canada FI lifted its position in shares of Smith & Nephew by 36.5% during the 4th quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 1,667 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 446 shares in the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Smith & Nephew by 3,471.4% during the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,750 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $49,000 after buying an additional 1,701 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hara Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Smith & Nephew by 391.4% during the 4th quarter. Hara Capital LLC now owns 2,457 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $60,000 after buying an additional 1,957 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 25.64% of the company's stock.

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.