Earnest Partners LLC Has $2.05 Million Stock Position in Smith & Nephew plc (NYSE:SNN)

Earnest Partners LLC reduced its holdings in Smith & Nephew plc (NYSE:SNN) by 1.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 83,312 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after selling 889 shares during the quarter. Earnest Partners LLC’s holdings in Smith & Nephew were worth $2,048,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. River Road Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Smith & Nephew by 64.0% in the 4th quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 2,032,016 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $49,947,000 after purchasing an additional 792,829 shares during the last quarter. Causeway Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Smith & Nephew in the 4th quarter valued at $11,820,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Smith & Nephew in the 4th quarter valued at $4,992,000. ABC Arbitrage SA bought a new stake in shares of Smith & Nephew in the 4th quarter valued at $4,847,000. Finally, Brandes Investment Partners LP boosted its stake in shares of Smith & Nephew by 11.4% in the 4th quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP now owns 1,363,039 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $33,504,000 after purchasing an additional 138,994 shares during the last quarter. 25.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Smith & Nephew Stock Up 0.5 %

Smith & Nephew stock opened at $26.76 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 2.51, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $27.54 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $26.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 0.71. Smith & Nephew plc has a 1-year low of $23.69 and a 1-year high of $31.72.

Smith & Nephew Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 28th will be paid a dividend of $0.447 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 28th. This represents a yield of 2.5%. This is an increase from Smith & Nephew’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.29. Smith & Nephew’s payout ratio is 41.20%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Smith & Nephew from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Canaccord Genuity Group reissued a “hold” rating and set a $27.00 target price on shares of Smith & Nephew in a research note on Monday, March 17th. UBS Group lowered shares of Smith & Nephew from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Finally, HSBC lowered shares of Smith & Nephew from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $27.00.

Smith & Nephew Company Profile

Smith & Nephew plc engages in the development, manufacture, marketing, and sale of medical devices. It operates through the following segments: Orthopaedics, Sports Medicine and ENT, and Advanced Wound Management. The Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine and ENT segment consists of the following businesses: knee implants, hip implants, other reconstruction, trauma, sports medicine joint repair, arthroscopic enabling technologies, and ENT.