Medtronic plc (NYSE:MDT) Shares Sold by Patten Group Inc.

Patten Group Inc. trimmed its position in Medtronic plc (NYSE:MDT) by 8.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 5,041 shares of the medical technology company’s stock after selling 457 shares during the period. Patten Group Inc.’s holdings in Medtronic were worth $403,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MDT. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Medtronic in the third quarter worth approximately $27,000. Stephens Consulting LLC lifted its position in Medtronic by 145.7% in the fourth quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 344 shares of the medical technology company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares during the period. J. Stern & Co. LLP acquired a new stake in Medtronic in the third quarter worth approximately $30,000. Fiduciary Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Medtronic in the fourth quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, Kieckhefer Group LLC acquired a new stake in Medtronic in the fourth quarter worth approximately $40,000. 82.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Medtronic

In other news, EVP Brett A. Wall sold 12,437 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.00, for a total value of $1,119,330.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 40,979 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,688,110. This represents a 23.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Medtronic Price Performance

MDT opened at $93.09 on Wednesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $87.57 and a 200-day moving average of $87.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $119.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.30, a PEG ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 0.84. Medtronic plc has a 12-month low of $75.96 and a 12-month high of $95.57. The company has a quick ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 1.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48.

Medtronic (NYSE:MDT) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The medical technology company reported $1.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.36 by $0.03. Medtronic had a return on equity of 14.07% and a net margin of 12.83%. The company had revenue of $8.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.33 billion. Equities analysts forecast that Medtronic plc will post 5.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Medtronic Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 27th were paid a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 27th. Medtronic’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 85.11%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MDT has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Medtronic from $99.00 to $96.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 15th. UBS Group increased their price objective on Medtronic from $85.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their price objective on Medtronic from $96.00 to $97.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Citigroup upgraded Medtronic from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $92.00 to $107.00 in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Medtronic in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $96.07.

About Medtronic

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.