Novare Capital Management LLC Cuts Stock Holdings in Stryker Co. (NYSE:SYK)

Novare Capital Management LLC lessened its position in Stryker Co. (NYSE:SYK) by 2.5% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 35,869 shares of the medical technology company’s stock after selling 924 shares during the quarter. Stryker makes up about 1.1% of Novare Capital Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest holding. Novare Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Stryker were worth $12,915,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in SYK. Clarendon Private LLC acquired a new position in Stryker during the fourth quarter worth $677,000. Consolidated Investment Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Stryker during the 4th quarter worth $792,000. Moody Lynn & Lieberson LLC boosted its position in shares of Stryker by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Moody Lynn & Lieberson LLC now owns 69,577 shares of the medical technology company’s stock valued at $25,051,000 after acquiring an additional 549 shares during the last quarter. Patton Albertson Miller Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Stryker by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Patton Albertson Miller Group LLC now owns 20,894 shares of the medical technology company’s stock valued at $7,523,000 after purchasing an additional 317 shares during the period. Finally, Running Oak Capital LLC increased its position in Stryker by 7.1% during the fourth quarter. Running Oak Capital LLC now owns 38,543 shares of the medical technology company’s stock worth $13,877,000 after purchasing an additional 2,561 shares during the last quarter. 77.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Stryker news, CEO Kevin Lobo sold 57,313 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $368.70, for a total value of $21,131,303.10. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 100,027 shares in the company, valued at $36,879,954.90. This represents a 36.43 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 5.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Stryker Stock Performance

NYSE:SYK opened at $394.08 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $150.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a quick ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. Stryker Co. has a 52 week low of $307.23 and a 52 week high of $398.20. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $376.11 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $360.81.

Stryker (NYSE:SYK) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The medical technology company reported $2.87 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.77 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $5.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.37 billion. Stryker had a return on equity of 23.07% and a net margin of 16.34%. Stryker’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.46 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Stryker Co. will post 12.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Stryker Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be paid a $0.84 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $3.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.85%. This is an increase from Stryker’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.80. Stryker’s payout ratio is currently 36.01%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have weighed in on SYK shares. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Stryker from $380.00 to $384.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Stryker from $375.00 to $420.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. StockNews.com cut Stryker from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on Stryker from $378.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, BTIG Research raised their price objective on Stryker from $383.00 to $394.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $405.80.

Stryker Company Profile

Stryker Corporation operates as a medical technology company. The company operates through two segments, MedSurg and Neurotechnology, and Orthopaedics and Spine. The Orthopaedics and Spine segment provides implants for use in total joint replacements, such as hip, knee and shoulder, and trauma and extremities surgeries.