Medtronic (NYSE:MDT) Shares Down 0.8% – Should You Sell?

Medtronic plc (NYSE:MDT)’s share price was down 0.8% on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $88.49 and last traded at $89.12. Approximately 1,322,674 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 83% from the average daily volume of 7,632,893 shares. The stock had previously closed at $89.86.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on MDT shares. UBS Group increased their target price on Medtronic from $85.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $105.00 target price on shares of Medtronic in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Citigroup raised shares of Medtronic from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $92.00 to $107.00 in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. 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. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Medtronic in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $96.07.

Medtronic Trading Down 1.5 %

The company has a market cap of $113.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.90, a P/E/G ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 0.80. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $91.02 and a 200 day simple moving average of $87.99. The company has a quick ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 1.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48.

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

Medtronic Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 28th will be issued a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 28th. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.16%. Medtronic’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 85.11%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Medtronic

In related news, EVP Brett A. Wall sold 9,850 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.41, for a total transaction of $792,038.50. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 40,708 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,273,330.28. This represents a 19.48 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Copley Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Medtronic during the third quarter valued at approximately $694,000. Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC lifted its holdings in Medtronic by 32.6% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC now owns 73,517 shares of the medical technology company’s stock worth $5,873,000 after purchasing an additional 18,057 shares during the period. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd increased its position in shares of Medtronic by 322.6% during the 3rd quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd now owns 73,593 shares of the medical technology company’s stock valued at $6,626,000 after purchasing an additional 56,178 shares during the period. Olstein Capital Management L.P. raised its holdings in shares of Medtronic by 8.0% in the 4th quarter. Olstein Capital Management L.P. now owns 94,000 shares of the medical technology company’s stock worth $7,509,000 after purchasing an additional 7,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Czech National Bank lifted its stake in Medtronic by 6.4% during the fourth quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 278,065 shares of the medical technology company’s stock valued at $22,212,000 after buying an additional 16,786 shares in the last quarter. 82.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Medtronic

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.