Medtronic plc (NYSE:MDT) Shares Sold by Highland Capital Management LLC

Highland Capital Management LLC decreased its stake in shares of Medtronic plc (NYSE:MDT) by 2.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 50,486 shares of the medical technology company’s stock after selling 1,194 shares during the quarter. Highland Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Medtronic were worth $4,033,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Fortitude Family Office LLC purchased a new position in shares of Medtronic during the 3rd quarter worth $27,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in Medtronic in the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Medtronic in the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. J. Stern & Co. LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Medtronic in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Kieckhefer Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Medtronic during the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.06% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Medtronic

In other Medtronic news, EVP Brett A. Wall sold 12,437 shares of Medtronic stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.00, for a total value of $1,119,330.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 40,979 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,688,110. This trade represents a 23.28 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Medtronic Stock Performance

NYSE MDT opened at $91.51 on Thursday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $83.99 and a two-hundred day moving average of $85.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 1.84 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. The company has a market capitalization of $117.34 billion, a PE ratio of 27.98, a P/E/G ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 0.83.

Medtronic (NYSE:MDT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 19th. The medical technology company reported $1.26 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.25 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $8.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.27 billion. Medtronic had a return on equity of 13.79% and a net margin of 13.00%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.25 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Medtronic plc will post 5.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Medtronic Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed 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. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.06%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 27th. Medtronic’s payout ratio is currently 85.63%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their price objective on Medtronic from $96.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Medtronic from $99.00 to $96.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 15th. Barclays lifted 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. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Medtronic from $106.00 to $98.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on shares of Medtronic from $96.00 to $93.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Medtronic currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $95.00.

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.