Medical Properties Trust (NYSE:MPW) Shares Gap Up – Should You Buy?

Shares of Medical Properties Trust, Inc. (NYSE:MPW) gapped up before the market opened on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $4.45, but opened at $4.65. Medical Properties Trust shares last traded at $4.34, with a volume of 4,701,765 shares.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on the company. Mizuho cut their price target on Medical Properties Trust from $6.00 to $5.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Truist Financial cut their target price on Medical Properties Trust from $6.00 to $4.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Medical Properties Trust presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $4.92.

Medical Properties Trust Price Performance

The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $4.11 and a 200-day simple moving average of $4.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a quick ratio of 2.38 and a current ratio of 2.38.

Medical Properties Trust Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 12th were given a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 12th. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.80%. Medical Properties Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -7.58%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO James Kevin Hanna sold 11,641 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 directly owns 366,913 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,364,916.36. This represents a 3.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 1.53% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of MPW. Allworth Financial LP raised its position in shares of Medical Properties Trust by 230.4% during the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 6,082 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 4,241 shares during the last quarter. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC acquired a new position in Medical Properties Trust in the third quarter valued at about $29,000. Truvestments Capital LLC bought a new position in Medical Properties Trust during the third quarter worth about $31,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of Medical Properties Trust by 107.3% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 6,077 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 3,145 shares during the period. Finally, RFG Advisory LLC acquired a new position in shares of Medical Properties Trust during the 4th quarter worth about $40,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.79% of the company’s stock.

Medical Properties Trust Company Profile

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.