Medtronic (NYSE:MDT) Shares Up 3.4% – What’s Next?

Shares of Medtronic plc (NYSE:MDT) shot up 3.4% on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $82.86 and last traded at $82.56. 3,892,412 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 33% from the average session volume of 5,826,884 shares. The stock had previously closed at $79.87.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on MDT. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Medtronic from $106.00 to $98.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Medtronic in a research report on Monday, November 18th. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on Medtronic from $96.00 to $93.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Citigroup raised their price target on Medtronic from $85.00 to $92.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised Medtronic from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $98.00 to $105.00 in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $95.00.

Medtronic Trading Down 2.5 %

The company has a market cap of $103.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.65, a P/E/G ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a current ratio of 1.84. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $84.17 and its 200 day moving average price is $84.89.

Medtronic (NYSE:MDT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 19th. The medical technology company reported $1.26 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.25 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $8.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.27 billion. Medtronic had a net margin of 13.00% and a return on equity of 13.79%. The business’s revenue was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.25 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Medtronic plc will post 5.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Medtronic Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 27th will be issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 27th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.47%. Medtronic’s payout ratio is 85.63%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Brett A. Wall sold 9,850 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.41, for a total value of $792,038.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 40,708 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,273,330.28. This trade represents a 19.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Medtronic

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Fortitude Family Office LLC purchased a new position in shares of Medtronic during the third quarter worth approximately $27,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Medtronic in the third quarter worth approximately $27,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Medtronic in the third quarter worth approximately $27,000. J. Stern & Co. LLP bought a new position in shares of Medtronic in the third quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Chelsea Counsel Co. bought a new position in shares of Medtronic in the third quarter worth approximately $45,000. 82.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Medtronic Company Profile

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.