Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC Reduces Holdings in Medtronic plc (NYSE:MDT)

Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC decreased its position in shares of Medtronic plc (NYSE:MDT) by 53.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 2,066 shares of the medical technology company’s stock after selling 2,346 shares during the quarter. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC’s holdings in Medtronic were worth $165,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Mainstream Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Medtronic during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. J. Stern & Co. LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Medtronic during the third quarter worth about $30,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Medtronic by 753.8% during the fourth quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 333 shares of the medical technology company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 294 shares during the period. Stephens Consulting LLC boosted its stake in shares of Medtronic by 145.7% during the fourth quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 344 shares of the medical technology company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 204 shares during the period. Finally, Fiduciary Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Medtronic during the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.06% of the company’s stock.

Medtronic Price Performance

MDT stock opened at $90.37 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $90.67 and a 200-day moving average of $88.07. Medtronic plc has a 12-month low of $75.96 and a 12-month high of $96.25. The company has a current ratio of 1.90, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. The company has a market cap of $115.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.47, a PEG ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 0.80.

Medtronic (NYSE:MDT) last posted its quarterly 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 net margin of 12.83% and a return on equity of 14.07%. The company had revenue of $8.29 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.33 billion. As a group, equities analysts expect that Medtronic plc will post 5.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Medtronic Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 28th will be paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 28th. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.10%. Medtronic’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 85.11%.

Insider Transactions at Medtronic

In other news, EVP Brett A. Wall sold 12,437 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.00, for a total transaction of $1,119,330.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 40,979 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,688,110. This trade represents a 23.28 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MDT has been the subject of several recent research reports. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Medtronic from $85.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $105.00 target price on shares of Medtronic in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Medtronic in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Truist Financial decreased their target price on shares of Medtronic from $93.00 to $89.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on shares of Medtronic from $90.00 to $91.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $96.07.

Medtronic 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.