Center for Financial Planning Inc. Grows Position in Medtronic PLC (NYSE:MDT)

Center for Financial Planning Inc. raised its position in Medtronic PLC (NYSE:MDT) by 8.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 4,857 shares of the medical technology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 365 shares during the quarter. Center for Financial Planning Inc.’s holdings in Medtronic were worth $436,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of MDT. TCTC Holdings LLC raised its holdings in Medtronic by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 39,718 shares of the medical technology company’s stock valued at $3,173,000 after buying an additional 1,301 shares during the period. Brighton Jones LLC raised its stake in shares of Medtronic by 1,368.0% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 39,989 shares of the medical technology company’s stock valued at $3,194,000 after acquiring an additional 37,265 shares during the period. Oxford Asset Management LLP raised its stake in shares of Medtronic by 70.1% in the 4th quarter. Oxford Asset Management LLP now owns 7,442 shares of the medical technology company’s stock valued at $594,000 after acquiring an additional 3,068 shares during the period. New Vernon Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Medtronic by 304.9% in the 4th quarter. New Vernon Investment Management LLC now owns 29,613 shares of the medical technology company’s stock valued at $2,425,000 after acquiring an additional 22,300 shares during the period. Finally, Advisor OS LLC raised its stake in shares of Medtronic by 152.0% in the 4th quarter. Advisor OS LLC now owns 11,800 shares of the medical technology company’s stock valued at $943,000 after acquiring an additional 7,118 shares during the period. 82.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Medtronic Stock Up 0.7%

Shares of NYSE:MDT opened at $86.30 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.85, a quick ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $84.49 and a 200 day simple moving average of $86.27. The firm has a market cap of $110.68 billion, a PE ratio of 23.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 0.79. Medtronic PLC has a 12-month low of $75.96 and a 12-month high of $96.25.

Medtronic (NYSE:MDT) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 21st. The medical technology company reported $1.62 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.58 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $8.93 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.81 billion. Medtronic had a net margin of 13.90% and a return on equity of 14.54%. The company’s revenue was up 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.46 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Medtronic PLC will post 5.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Medtronic Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 11th. Investors of record on Friday, June 27th will be issued a $0.71 dividend. This is a positive change from Medtronic’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. This represents a $2.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.29%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 27th. Medtronic’s payout ratio is currently 77.35%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MDT has been the topic of several research reports. Leerink Partners initiated coverage on Medtronic in a research report on Monday, June 16th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $110.00 price objective on the stock. Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on Medtronic from $94.00 to $92.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Medtronic in a report on Friday, June 6th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Medtronic from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday. Finally, Leerink Partnrs upgraded shares of Medtronic to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 16th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $97.87.

About Medtronic

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.