Medtronic plc (NYSE:MDT) Shares Sold by GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC

GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC lowered its stake in Medtronic plc (NYSE:MDT) by 48.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 7,509 shares of the medical technology company’s stock after selling 6,927 shares during the quarter. GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC’s holdings in Medtronic were worth $600,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Fortitude Family Office LLC acquired a new position in shares of Medtronic in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Medtronic in the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in Medtronic during the third quarter worth $27,000. J. Stern & Co. LLP purchased a new position in shares of Medtronic during the third quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Fiduciary Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Medtronic in the fourth quarter valued at $36,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.06% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently commented on MDT. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on Medtronic from $96.00 to $93.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded shares of Medtronic from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $98.00 to $105.00 in a report on Thursday, October 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Medtronic from $99.00 to $96.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 15th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Medtronic from $106.00 to $98.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Truist Financial reduced their price objective on Medtronic from $93.00 to $89.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $95.00.

Insider Transactions at Medtronic

In related 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 transaction of $1,119,330.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 40,979 shares in the company, valued at $3,688,110. This trade represents a 23.28 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Medtronic Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MDT opened at $90.74 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $84.38 and its 200-day simple moving average is $86.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a current ratio of 1.84. The firm has a market capitalization of $116.35 billion, a PE ratio of 27.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.84. Medtronic plc has a fifty-two week low of $75.96 and a fifty-two week high of $93.08.

Medtronic (NYSE:MDT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 19th. The medical technology company reported $1.26 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.25 by $0.01. Medtronic had a net margin of 13.00% and a return on equity of 13.79%. The business had revenue of $8.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.27 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.25 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Medtronic plc will post 5.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Medtronic Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 27th were issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.09%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 27th. Medtronic’s payout ratio is 85.63%.

Medtronic Company 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.