Stryker Co. (NYSE:SYK) Shares Sold by First Merchants Corp

First Merchants Corp lowered its stake in shares of Stryker Co. (NYSE:SYK) by 0.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 59,350 shares of the medical technology company’s stock after selling 436 shares during the period. Stryker makes up approximately 0.8% of First Merchants Corp’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest position. First Merchants Corp’s holdings in Stryker were worth $21,369,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Dunhill Financial LLC increased its stake in Stryker by 94.9% during the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 76 shares of the medical technology company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the period. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Stryker in the third quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Activest Wealth Management purchased a new stake in Stryker during the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in Stryker during the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. Finally, Hara Capital LLC purchased a new position in Stryker in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.09% of the company’s stock.

Stryker Stock Up 0.7 %

SYK opened at $388.28 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $148.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 50.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 1.32 and a current ratio of 1.95. Stryker Co. has a one year low of $314.93 and a one year high of $406.19. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $377.19 and its 200-day simple moving average is $366.15.

Stryker (NYSE:SYK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The medical technology company reported $4.01 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.87 by $0.14. Stryker had a return on equity of 23.58% and a net margin of 13.25%. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $3.46 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Stryker Co. will post 13.49 EPS for the current year.

Stryker Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.84 per share. This represents a $3.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.87%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. Stryker’s dividend payout ratio is currently 43.30%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on SYK. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on Stryker from $400.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. BTIG Research upped their price target on Stryker from $383.00 to $394.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $420.00 price target (up previously from $380.00) on shares of Stryker in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Stryker from $378.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Stryker from $384.00 to $427.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $420.68.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Ronda E. Stryker sold 201,392 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $392.24, for a total transaction of $78,993,998.08. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 3,642,075 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,428,567,498. This represents a 5.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 5.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Stryker Company Profile

Stryker Corporation operates as a medical technology company. The company operates through two segments, MedSurg and Neurotechnology, and Orthopaedics and Spine. The Orthopaedics and Spine segment provides implants for use in total joint replacements, such as hip, knee and shoulder, and trauma and extremities surgeries.