Gateway Investment Advisers LLC Increases Stake in Medtronic plc (NYSE:MDT)

Gateway Investment Advisers LLC increased its stake in Medtronic plc (NYSE:MDT) by 0.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 101,408 shares of the medical technology company’s stock after buying an additional 608 shares during the period. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC’s holdings in Medtronic were worth $9,112,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in Medtronic by 1,368.0% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 39,989 shares of the medical technology company’s stock worth $3,194,000 after purchasing an additional 37,265 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd grew its position in shares of Medtronic by 6.1% in the 4th quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 164,576 shares of the medical technology company’s stock worth $13,146,000 after buying an additional 9,451 shares during the period. Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Medtronic in the 4th quarter worth about $78,000. Shepherd Financial Partners LLC lifted its position in Medtronic by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. Shepherd Financial Partners LLC now owns 5,567 shares of the medical technology company’s stock valued at $445,000 after acquiring an additional 159 shares during the period. Finally, Vest Financial LLC boosted its stake in Medtronic by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 633,609 shares of the medical technology company’s stock worth $50,613,000 after acquiring an additional 20,806 shares in the last quarter. 82.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Medtronic Stock Performance

Shares of MDT stock opened at $87.38 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 1.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $83.92 and a 200-day moving average price of $86.18. Medtronic plc has a 52 week low of $75.96 and a 52 week high of $96.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $112.07 billion, a PE ratio of 26.56, a P/E/G ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 0.79.

Medtronic (NYSE:MDT) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 21st. The medical technology company reported $1.62 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.58 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $8.93 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.81 billion. Medtronic had a net margin of 12.83% and a return on equity of 14.07%. The firm’s revenue was up 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.46 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Medtronic plc will post 5.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Medtronic Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 11th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 27th will be paid a dividend of $0.71 per share. This is an increase from Medtronic’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.25%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 27th. Medtronic’s payout ratio is currently 78.45%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently issued reports on MDT. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Medtronic in a report on Friday. Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on Medtronic from $94.00 to $92.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Wall Street Zen downgraded Medtronic from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 24th. UBS Group increased their target price on Medtronic from $85.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on Medtronic from $105.00 to $101.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $97.00.

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.