Medtronic plc (NYSE:MDT) Shares Sold by Saxon Interests Inc.

Saxon Interests Inc. trimmed its holdings in Medtronic plc (NYSE:MDT) by 64.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,999 shares of the medical technology company’s stock after selling 16,668 shares during the period. Saxon Interests Inc.’s holdings in Medtronic were worth $741,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of MDT. Fortitude Family Office LLC purchased a new stake in Medtronic during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Hartford Financial Management Inc. boosted its position in Medtronic by 425.0% during the 3rd quarter. Hartford Financial Management Inc. now owns 315 shares of the medical technology company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 255 shares during the period. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in Medtronic by 317.0% during the 3rd quarter. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. now owns 367 shares of the medical technology company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 279 shares during the period. Fairfield Bush & CO. acquired a new position in Medtronic during the 2nd quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Certified Advisory Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Medtronic in the first quarter valued at $31,000. 82.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Medtronic

In other news, EVP Sean Salmon sold 30,695 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.13, for a total value of $2,613,065.35. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 48,289 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,110,842.57. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on MDT shares. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on Medtronic from $89.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 21st. Mizuho upped their price target on Medtronic from $95.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 21st. Truist Financial upped their price target on Medtronic from $87.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 21st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $92.00 target price on shares of Medtronic in a research note on Wednesday, February 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $94.91.

Medtronic Stock Performance

Shares of MDT stock traded up $0.23 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $87.15. The stock had a trading volume of 7,579,459 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,365,203. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $85.23 and its 200 day simple moving average is $80.73. The company has a quick ratio of 1.71, a current ratio of 2.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. Medtronic plc has a one year low of $68.84 and a one year high of $92.02. The firm has a market cap of $115.72 billion, a PE ratio of 27.75, a P/E/G ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.76.

Medtronic (NYSE:MDT) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 20th. The medical technology company reported $1.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.26 by $0.04. Medtronic had a return on equity of 13.71% and a net margin of 13.00%. The business had revenue of $8.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.95 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.30 EPS. Medtronic’s quarterly revenue was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Medtronic plc will post 5.2 EPS for the current year.

Medtronic Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 12th. Investors of record on Friday, March 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.69 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 21st. This represents a $2.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.17%. Medtronic’s dividend payout ratio is 87.90%.

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.