Medtronic plc (NYSE:MDT) Shares Sold by Primecap Management Co. CA

Primecap Management Co. CA lessened its holdings in shares of Medtronic plc (NYSE:MDT) by 15.9% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 727,185 shares of the medical technology company’s stock after selling 137,760 shares during the period. Primecap Management Co. CA’s holdings in Medtronic were worth $58,088,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in MDT. Mainstream Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Medtronic during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Medtronic during the 3rd quarter worth about $27,000. Stephens Consulting LLC raised its position in shares of Medtronic by 145.7% during the 4th quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 344 shares of the medical technology company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 204 shares in the last quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. raised its position in shares of Medtronic by 753.8% during the 4th quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 333 shares of the medical technology company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 294 shares in the last quarter. Finally, J. Stern & Co. LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Medtronic during the 3rd quarter worth about $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.06% of the company’s stock.

Medtronic Trading Down 1.3 %

Shares of MDT stock opened at $92.10 on Wednesday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $90.12 and its two-hundred day moving average is $88.02. Medtronic plc has a twelve month low of $75.96 and a twelve month high of $96.25. The company has a market capitalization of $118.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a current ratio of 1.90, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48.

Medtronic (NYSE:MDT) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The medical technology company reported $1.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.33 billion. Equities analysts forecast that Medtronic plc will post 5.46 EPS for the current year.

Medtronic Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 28th will be issued a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 28th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.04%. Medtronic’s dividend payout ratio is currently 85.11%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on MDT shares. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $105.00 target price on shares of Medtronic in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Citigroup upgraded Medtronic from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $92.00 to $107.00 in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Medtronic in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Medtronic from $106.00 to $98.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Medtronic from $90.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $96.07.

Insider Activity

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 stock was sold at an average price of $90.00, for a total value of $1,119,330.00. Following the completion of the sale, 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

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.