Foster & Motley Inc. Raises Stake in Medtronic plc (NYSE:MDT)

Foster & Motley Inc. raised its position in Medtronic plc (NYSE:MDT) by 30.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 32,643 shares of the medical technology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 7,567 shares during the quarter. Foster & Motley Inc.’s holdings in Medtronic were worth $2,608,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MDT. EP Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Medtronic by 47.2% in the second quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 12,255 shares of the medical technology company’s stock worth $965,000 after acquiring an additional 3,931 shares during the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Medtronic in the second quarter worth approximately $13,571,000. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund raised its holdings in Medtronic by 1,195.9% during the second quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 1,837,600 shares of the medical technology company’s stock worth $144,637,000 after purchasing an additional 1,695,800 shares in the last quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Medtronic by 30.7% during the second quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 106,247 shares of the medical technology company’s stock worth $8,363,000 after purchasing an additional 24,936 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Centaurus Financial Inc. raised its holdings in Medtronic by 34.8% during the second quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. now owns 6,250 shares of the medical technology company’s stock worth $492,000 after purchasing an additional 1,613 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.06% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Brett A. Wall sold 9,850 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.41, for a total value of $792,038.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 40,708 shares in the company, valued at $3,273,330.28. The trade was a 19.48 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Medtronic Stock Performance

Shares of MDT opened at $92.01 on Friday. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $117.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.14, a P/E/G ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 0.83. The company’s fifty day moving average is $84.14 and its two-hundred day moving average is $85.87. Medtronic plc has a 1 year low of $75.96 and a 1 year high of $93.08.

Medtronic (NYSE:MDT) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, November 19th. The medical technology company reported $1.26 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.25 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $8.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.27 billion. Medtronic had a net margin of 13.00% and a return on equity of 13.79%. The business’s revenue was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.25 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Medtronic plc will post 5.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Medtronic Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 27th were given a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 27th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.04%. Medtronic’s payout ratio is currently 85.63%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have weighed in on MDT shares. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Medtronic from $105.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Medtronic from $106.00 to $98.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Royal Bank of Canada raised shares of Medtronic from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $98.00 to $105.00 in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Medtronic in a report on Monday, November 18th. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut their target price on shares of Medtronic from $96.00 to $93.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. 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 issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $95.00.

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.