RiverFront Investment Group LLC Cuts Stake in Stryker Co. (NYSE:SYK)

RiverFront Investment Group LLC lessened its stake in shares of Stryker Co. (NYSE:SYK) by 0.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 8,795 shares of the medical technology company’s stock after selling 49 shares during the quarter. RiverFront Investment Group LLC’s holdings in Stryker were worth $3,167,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of SYK. J. W. Coons Advisors LLC grew its position in Stryker by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. J. W. Coons Advisors LLC now owns 3,653 shares of the medical technology company’s stock valued at $1,315,000 after acquiring an additional 26 shares in the last quarter. Mascoma Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Stryker by 22.7% during the 4th quarter. Mascoma Wealth Management LLC now owns 146 shares of the medical technology company’s stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Stryker by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,816 shares of the medical technology company’s stock worth $654,000 after buying an additional 28 shares during the period. Lindbrook Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Stryker by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 1,407 shares of the medical technology company’s stock worth $507,000 after buying an additional 28 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Alhambra Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Stryker by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Alhambra Investment Management LLC now owns 1,997 shares of the medical technology company’s stock valued at $719,000 after buying an additional 29 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.09% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Stryker

In other news, Director Ronda E. Stryker sold 201,392 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $392.24, for a total value of $78,993,998.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,642,075 shares in the company, valued at $1,428,567,498. This trade represents a 5.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Allan C. Golston sold 2,458 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $383.07, for a total value of $941,586.06. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 14,895 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,705,827.65. The trade was a 14.16 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 5.90% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on SYK. Argus set a $450.00 price target on Stryker in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Stryker from $425.00 to $435.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Stryker from $400.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their price target on shares of Stryker from $420.00 to $435.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Stryker from $427.00 to $435.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $421.90.

Stryker Stock Down 0.9 %

Stryker stock opened at $364.38 on Friday. 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 company has a 50-day simple moving average of $384.08 and a 200-day simple moving average of $374.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $139.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.96, a P/E/G ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.95.

Stryker (NYSE:SYK) last posted its 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 net margin of 13.25% and a return on equity of 23.58%. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $3.46 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Stryker Co. will post 13.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Stryker Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.84 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $3.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.92%. Stryker’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.