StoneX Group Inc. Makes New Investment in Smith & Nephew plc (NYSE:SNN)

StoneX Group Inc. bought a new position in Smith & Nephew plc (NYSE:SNN - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 77,183 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,897,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of SNN. Principal Securities Inc. grew its stake in Smith & Nephew by 87.6% during the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,480 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 691 shares during the last quarter. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in Smith & Nephew during the 4th quarter valued at $41,000. National Bank of Canada FI raised its position in Smith & Nephew by 36.5% in 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 purchasing an additional 446 shares during the last quarter. Hara Capital LLC boosted its stake in Smith & Nephew by 391.4% in the fourth quarter. Hara Capital LLC now owns 2,457 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $60,000 after purchasing an additional 1,957 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Smith & Nephew by 31.8% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,975 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $73,000 after purchasing an additional 718 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 25.64% of the company's stock.

Smith & Nephew Trading Down 5.8 %

Shares of NYSE SNN traded down $1.61 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $26.33. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,294,646 shares, compared to its average volume of 815,303. Smith & Nephew plc has a one year low of $23.65 and a one year high of $31.72. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $27.38 and its 200-day simple moving average is $26.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 2.51 and a quick ratio of 1.11. The stock has a market cap of $11.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.19, 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. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 28th will be given a dividend of $0.447 per share. This is a boost from Smith & Nephew's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 28th. This represents a dividend yield of 2.5%. Smith & Nephew's payout ratio is presently 41.20%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on SNN shares. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Smith & Nephew from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. UBS Group lowered shares of Smith & Nephew from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Finally, 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. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $27.00.

About Smith & Nephew

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.