Howard Capital Management Inc. Buys New Shares in Medtronic plc (NYSE:MDT)

Howard Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Medtronic plc (NYSE:MDT) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 9,181 shares of the medical technology company’s stock, valued at approximately $733,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in MDT. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its position in shares of Medtronic by 436.7% during 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 valued at $661,125,000 after purchasing an additional 5,975,110 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Medtronic by 2,043.4% during 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 buying an additional 2,476,935 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can boosted its holdings in shares of Medtronic by 65.0% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 4,546,819 shares of the medical technology company’s stock worth $406,122,000 after buying an additional 1,790,483 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its position in shares of Medtronic by 58.4% during the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 3,850,914 shares of the medical technology company’s stock worth $346,705,000 after buying an additional 1,420,263 shares during the period. Finally, Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Medtronic by 5,124.5% in the 3rd quarter. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC now owns 1,035,708 shares of the medical technology company’s stock valued at $93,245,000 after acquiring an additional 1,015,884 shares in the last quarter. 82.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Medtronic Stock Performance

NYSE MDT opened at $90.27 on Tuesday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $86.26 and a 200-day moving average price of $87.24. The firm has a market cap of $115.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.44, a PEG ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 1.90 and a quick ratio of 1.39. Medtronic plc has a 1 year low of $75.96 and a 1 year high of $93.08.

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

Medtronic Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 10th. Investors of record on Friday, December 27th were given a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.10%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 27th. Medtronic’s payout ratio is 85.11%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Brett A. Wall sold 12,437 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.00, for a total transaction of $1,119,330.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 40,979 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,688,110. This trade represents a 23.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on MDT shares. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Medtronic from $85.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Barclays boosted their target price on Medtronic from $105.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $105.00 price target on shares of Medtronic in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Medtronic from $106.00 to $98.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Truist Financial cut their target price on Medtronic from $93.00 to $89.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Medtronic has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $95.00.

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.