Code Waechter LLC Lowers Stock Position in Medtronic plc (NYSE:MDT)

Code Waechter LLC lessened its stake in Medtronic plc (NYSE:MDT) by 3.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 5,468 shares of the medical technology company’s stock after selling 174 shares during the period. Code Waechter LLC’s holdings in Medtronic were worth $437,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Fortitude Family Office LLC bought a new position in Medtronic in the third quarter valued at $27,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Medtronic in the 3rd quarter worth about $27,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Medtronic during the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. J. Stern & Co. LLP purchased a new position in shares of Medtronic during the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Chelsea Counsel Co. bought a new stake in Medtronic in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $45,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.06% of the company’s stock.

Medtronic Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of NYSE MDT opened at $81.68 on Tuesday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $83.83 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $84.96. Medtronic plc has a 12 month low of $75.96 and a 12 month high of $92.68. The company has a current ratio of 1.84, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The firm has a market capitalization of $104.74 billion, a PE ratio of 24.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 0.83.

Medtronic (NYSE:MDT) last released its quarterly earnings results 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. The company had revenue of $8.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.27 billion. Medtronic had a net margin of 13.00% and a return on equity of 13.79%. Medtronic’s revenue was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.25 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Medtronic plc will post 5.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Medtronic Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 10th. Investors of record on Friday, December 27th were given a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 27th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.43%. Medtronic’s dividend payout ratio is presently 85.63%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Brett A. Wall sold 9,850 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 $3,273,330.28. The trade was a 19.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Medtronic from $106.00 to $98.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Truist Financial decreased their target price on shares of Medtronic from $93.00 to $89.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Medtronic from $99.00 to $96.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price objective on Medtronic from $96.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Medtronic in a report on Monday, November 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Medtronic has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $95.00.

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.