Smith & Nephew plc (NYSE:SNN) Short Interest Down 28.1% in March

Smith & Nephew plc (NYSE:SNN) saw a significant decrease in short interest during the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,150,000 shares, a decrease of 28.1% from the February 28th total of 1,600,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 819,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.4 days. Approximately 0.3% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Smith & Nephew

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of SNN. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Smith & Nephew by 29.3% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 27,199 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $847,000 after acquiring an additional 6,164 shares during the period. Stifel Financial Corp purchased a new position in Smith & Nephew in the third quarter valued at about $1,258,000. Maverick Capital Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Smith & Nephew during the third quarter worth about $2,086,000. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in shares of Smith & Nephew by 26.0% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 5,871 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $144,000 after buying an additional 1,213 shares during the period. Finally, ABC Arbitrage SA acquired a new stake in shares of Smith & Nephew in the fourth quarter valued at about $4,847,000. 25.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Smith & Nephew Trading Down 0.7 %

NYSE SNN traded down $0.21 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $28.16. 595,017 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 812,075. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 2.51. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 0.83. The business’s 50 day moving average is $27.24 and its 200-day moving average is $26.88. Smith & Nephew has a 12-month low of $23.65 and a 12-month high of $31.72.

Smith & Nephew Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 28th will be given a $0.447 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 28th. This is a boost from Smith & Nephew’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.29. This represents a dividend yield of 2.5%. Smith & Nephew’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 41.20%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SNN has been the subject of several research reports. StockNews.com raised Smith & Nephew from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. UBS Group downgraded Smith & Nephew from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $27.00 target price on shares of Smith & Nephew in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Smith & Nephew currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $27.00.

About Smith & Nephew

Smith & Nephew plc engages in the development, manufacture, marketing, and sale of medical devices. It operates through the following segments: Orthopaedics, Sports Medicine and ENT, and Advanced Wound Management. The Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine and ENT segment consists of the following businesses: knee implants, hip implants, other reconstruction, trauma, sports medicine joint repair, arthroscopic enabling technologies, and ENT.