Freedom Investment Management Inc. Sells 181 Shares of Stryker Co. (NYSE:SYK)

Freedom Investment Management Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Stryker Co. (NYSE:SYK) by 3.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,839 shares of the medical technology company’s stock after selling 181 shares during the quarter. Freedom Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Stryker were worth $2,102,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of SYK. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC bought a new position in Stryker during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. lifted its stake in Stryker by 618.2% in the fourth quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 79 shares of the medical technology company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares during the last quarter. Centricity Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Stryker during the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. BankPlus Trust Department purchased a new stake in Stryker during the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, VSM Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in Stryker in the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. 77.09% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have weighed in on SYK. Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating and set a $450.00 price target on shares of Stryker in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Canaccord Genuity Group raised their target price on shares of Stryker from $420.00 to $435.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. BTIG Research set a $403.00 price objective on Stryker and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Stryker from $427.00 to $435.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Argus set a $450.00 price target on Stryker in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $423.53.

Insider Transactions at Stryker

In other Stryker news, Director Ronda E. Stryker sold 201,392 shares of the business’s 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 sale, the director now directly owns 3,642,075 shares in the company, valued at $1,428,567,498. This represents a 5.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Allan C. Golston sold 2,458 shares of Stryker stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $383.07, for a total transaction of $941,586.06. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 14,895 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,705,827.65. This trade represents a 14.16 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 5.90% of the company’s stock.

Stryker Stock Performance

Shares of SYK stock opened at $346.46 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $132.24 billion, a PE ratio of 44.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.93. Stryker Co. has a 52-week low of $314.93 and a 52-week high of $406.19. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $371.83 and a 200-day simple moving average of $373.11. The company has a quick ratio of 1.32, a current ratio of 1.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59.

Stryker (NYSE:SYK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The medical technology company reported $4.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 in the prior year, the company earned $3.46 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Stryker Co. will post 13.47 EPS for the current year.

Stryker Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a $0.84 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $3.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.97%. Stryker’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 43.30%.

About Stryker

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.