Medtronic plc (NYSE:MDT) Shares Sold by Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd.

Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. trimmed its stake in Medtronic plc (NYSE:MDT) by 0.6% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 170,654 shares of the medical technology company’s stock after selling 1,031 shares during the quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd.’s holdings in Medtronic were worth $13,632,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of MDT. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Medtronic in the 4th quarter worth about $852,732,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its stake in shares of Medtronic by 436.7% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 7,343,385 shares of the medical technology company’s stock worth $661,125,000 after acquiring an additional 5,975,110 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its stake in shares of Medtronic by 2,043.4% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 2,598,150 shares of the medical technology company’s stock worth $207,540,000 after acquiring an additional 2,476,935 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can boosted its holdings in shares of Medtronic by 65.0% in the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 4,546,819 shares of the medical technology company’s stock valued at $406,122,000 after acquiring an additional 1,790,483 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Boston Partners raised its holdings in Medtronic by 117.4% during the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,102,605 shares of the medical technology company’s stock worth $248,311,000 after purchasing an additional 1,675,588 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.06% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $105.00 price target on shares of Medtronic in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Medtronic from $105.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Medtronic in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Citigroup raised Medtronic from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $92.00 to $107.00 in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on Medtronic from $90.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $96.07.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Brett A. Wall sold 12,437 shares of Medtronic stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.00, for a total value of $1,119,330.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 40,979 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,688,110. This trade represents a 23.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Medtronic Stock Down 0.2 %

Medtronic stock opened at $90.16 on Tuesday. Medtronic plc has a twelve month low of $75.96 and a twelve month high of $96.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a current ratio of 1.90. The firm has a market cap of $115.64 billion, a PE ratio of 27.40, a P/E/G ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 0.80. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $90.84 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $88.05.

Medtronic (NYSE:MDT) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The medical technology company reported $1.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.36 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $8.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.33 billion. Medtronic had a net margin of 12.83% and a return on equity of 14.07%. On average, research analysts predict that Medtronic plc will post 5.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Medtronic Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 28th will be issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 28th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.11%. Medtronic’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 85.11%.

Medtronic 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.