Woodward Diversified Capital LLC Sells 2,086 Shares of Medtronic plc (NYSE:MDT)

Woodward Diversified Capital LLC decreased its holdings in Medtronic plc (NYSE:MDT) by 43.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,705 shares of the medical technology company’s stock after selling 2,086 shares during the period. Woodward Diversified Capital LLC’s holdings in Medtronic were worth $216,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its stake in Medtronic by 436.7% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 7,343,385 shares of the medical technology company’s stock worth $661,125,000 after buying an additional 5,975,110 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its holdings in shares of Medtronic by 65.0% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 4,546,819 shares of the medical technology company’s stock worth $406,122,000 after acquiring an additional 1,790,483 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its stake in shares of Medtronic by 58.4% during the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 3,850,914 shares of the medical technology company’s stock worth $346,705,000 after purchasing an additional 1,420,263 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Medtronic by 8,908.6% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,298,415 shares of the medical technology company’s stock valued at $116,896,000 after purchasing an additional 1,284,002 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC raised its position in Medtronic by 5,124.5% in the 3rd quarter. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC now owns 1,035,708 shares of the medical technology company’s stock worth $93,245,000 after purchasing an additional 1,015,884 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.06% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on MDT. Barclays upped their target price on Medtronic from $105.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Medtronic from $106.00 to $98.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Medtronic from $99.00 to $96.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on shares of Medtronic from $96.00 to $93.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Medtronic in a research note on Monday, November 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $95.00.

Medtronic Price Performance

Shares of MDT stock opened at $90.01 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $84.78 and its 200 day moving average is $86.31. Medtronic plc has a 1-year low of $75.96 and a 1-year high of $93.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 1.84 and a quick ratio of 1.39. The company has a market cap of $115.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.53, a PEG ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.84.

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

Medtronic Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 10th. Investors of record on Friday, December 27th were paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 27th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.11%. Medtronic’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 85.63%.

Insider Activity at Medtronic

In other Medtronic news, EVP Brett A. Wall sold 9,850 shares of the business’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 transaction of $792,038.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 40,708 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,273,330.28. The trade was a 19.48 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.