Medical Properties Trust (NYSE:MPW) Stock Price Up 5% – Still a Buy?

Medical Properties Trust, Inc. (NYSE:MPW)’s stock price shot up 5% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $5.84 and last traded at $5.94. 480,869 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 96% from the average session volume of 13,032,956 shares. The stock had previously closed at $5.65.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MPW has been the topic of several recent research reports. StockNews.com raised shares of Medical Properties Trust from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday. Mizuho lowered their price objective on Medical Properties Trust from $6.00 to $5.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, Truist Financial lowered their target price on shares of Medical Properties Trust from $6.00 to $4.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Medical Properties Trust has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $4.92.

Medical Properties Trust Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $3.61 billion, a P/E ratio of -1.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 1.32. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $4.60 and its 200-day simple moving average is $4.69. The company has a current ratio of 2.38, a quick ratio of 2.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69.

Medical Properties Trust Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be issued a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.32%. Medical Properties Trust’s payout ratio is currently -8.42%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Medical Properties Trust news, CAO James Kevin Hanna sold 11,641 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.72, for a total transaction of $43,304.52. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 366,913 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,364,916.36. This represents a 3.08 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.53% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Medical Properties Trust

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Quadrature Capital Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Medical Properties Trust during the 3rd quarter worth $927,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in Medical Properties Trust by 21.7% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,704,785 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $9,973,000 after acquiring an additional 303,628 shares in the last quarter. Versor Investments LP raised its stake in Medical Properties Trust by 192.3% during the 4th quarter. Versor Investments LP now owns 285,000 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,126,000 after acquiring an additional 187,500 shares during the period. Wolverine Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Medical Properties Trust by 27.8% in the third quarter. Wolverine Asset Management LLC now owns 517,866 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $3,030,000 after purchasing an additional 112,721 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its stake in shares of Medical Properties Trust by 353.5% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,525,714 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $20,625,000 after purchasing an additional 2,748,245 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 71.79% of the company’s stock.

About Medical Properties Trust

Medical Properties Trust, Inc is a self-advised real estate investment trust formed in 2003 to acquire and develop net-leased hospital facilities. From its inception in Birmingham, Alabama, the Company has grown to become one of the world's largest owners of hospital real estate with 441 facilities and approximately 44,000 licensed beds as of September 30, 2023.