Franklin Resources Inc. Has $45.37 Million Stake in ResMed Inc. (NYSE:RMD)

Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in ResMed Inc. (NYSE:RMD) by 13.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 198,372 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after buying an additional 24,259 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. owned 0.14% of ResMed worth $45,366,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in ResMed during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $118,605,000. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of ResMed by 10.9% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,858,814 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $939,114,000 after buying an additional 380,383 shares in the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of ResMed by 60.0% during the 4th quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 668,908 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $152,973,000 after buying an additional 250,746 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of ResMed during the 4th quarter worth $50,364,000. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its stake in ResMed by 92.7% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 448,151 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $103,214,000 after buying an additional 215,561 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 54.98% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other ResMed news, insider Kaushik Ghoshal sold 9,113 shares of ResMed stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $235.40, for a total value of $2,145,200.20. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 9,725 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,289,265. The trade was a 48.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Peter C. Farrell sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $242.11, for a total transaction of $484,220.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 77,218 shares in the company, valued at $18,695,249.98. This represents a 2.52 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 41,004 shares of company stock worth $9,618,128. 0.71% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

ResMed Stock Down 4.0 %

Shares of NYSE RMD opened at $204.72 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $230.74 and its 200-day moving average price is $237.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 2.29 and a current ratio of 3.33. ResMed Inc. has a 52-week low of $172.19 and a 52-week high of $263.05. The company has a market capitalization of $30.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 0.74.

ResMed (NYSE:RMD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.43 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.29 by $0.14. ResMed had a net margin of 25.34% and a return on equity of 26.17%. Equities analysts forecast that ResMed Inc. will post 9.47 earnings per share for the current year.

ResMed Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 20th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 13th were paid a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 13th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.04%. ResMed’s dividend payout ratio is currently 25.03%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently commented on RMD. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of ResMed in a report on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of ResMed in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $280.00 target price on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on ResMed from $270.00 to $286.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com lowered ResMed from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Citigroup raised ResMed from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $249.73.

ResMed Profile

ResMed Inc develops, manufactures, distributes, and markets medical devices and cloud-based software applications for the healthcare markets. The company operates in two segments, Sleep and Respiratory Care, and Software as a Service. It offers various products and solutions for a range of respiratory disorders, including ApneaLink Air, a portable diagnostic device that measures oximetry, respiratory effort, pulse, nasal flow, and snoring; and NightOwl, a portable, cloud-connected, and disposable diagnostic device that measures AHI based on derived peripheral arterial tone, actigraphy, and oximetry over several nights.