USS Investment Management Ltd Sells 25,001 Shares of Medtronic plc (NYSE:MDT)

USS Investment Management Ltd lessened its stake in Medtronic plc (NYSE:MDT) by 1.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,249,374 shares of the medical technology company’s stock after selling 25,001 shares during the period. Medtronic accounts for 1.3% of USS Investment Management Ltd’s portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest holding. USS Investment Management Ltd owned about 0.18% of Medtronic worth $179,714,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in MDT. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Medtronic during the fourth quarter worth $1,163,580,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Medtronic during the fourth quarter worth approximately $852,732,000. Beutel Goodman & Co Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Medtronic in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $377,169,000. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its stake in Medtronic by 2,043.4% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 2,598,150 shares of the medical technology company’s stock worth $207,540,000 after purchasing an additional 2,476,935 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. grew its position in Medtronic by 17.8% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 15,445,284 shares of the medical technology company’s stock worth $1,233,769,000 after buying an additional 2,333,600 shares in the last quarter. 82.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Medtronic Trading Up 0.6%

Medtronic stock opened at $86.94 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $111.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.43, a PEG ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 0.81. Medtronic plc has a fifty-two week low of $75.96 and a fifty-two week high of $96.25. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $85.83 and its 200-day moving average price is $86.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a current ratio of 1.90.

Medtronic (NYSE:MDT) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The medical technology company reported $1.39 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.36 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $8.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.33 billion. Medtronic had a return on equity of 14.07% and a net margin of 12.83%. Equities research analysts forecast that Medtronic plc will post 5.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Medtronic Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 11th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 28th were issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 28th. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.22%. Medtronic’s dividend payout ratio is currently 85.11%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on MDT. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $105.00 target price on shares of Medtronic in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. UBS Group increased their price target on Medtronic from $85.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Medtronic from $90.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Medtronic in a research report on Monday. Finally, Citigroup raised Medtronic from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $92.00 to $107.00 in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $96.14.

Medtronic Company Profile

Medtronic plc develops, manufactures, and sells device-based medical therapies to healthcare systems, physicians, clinicians, and patients worldwide. Its Cardiovascular Portfolio segment offers implantable cardiac pacemakers, cardioverter defibrillators, and cardiac resynchronization therapy devices; cardiac ablation products; insertable cardiac monitor systems; TYRX products; and remote monitoring and patient-centered software.