The Goldman Sachs Group Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Stryker (NYSE:SYK) Stock

Stryker (NYSE:SYK) had its price target boosted by analysts at The Goldman Sachs Group from $384.00 to $427.00 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “neutral” rating on the medical technology company’s stock. The Goldman Sachs Group’s price target indicates a potential upside of 8.52% from the company’s previous close.

SYK has been the topic of several other reports. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Stryker from $425.00 to $435.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. JMP Securities reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Stryker in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. UBS Group raised their price target on Stryker from $366.00 to $370.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Canaccord Genuity Group raised their price target on Stryker from $420.00 to $435.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Stryker from $400.00 to $440.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $416.40.

Stryker Stock Performance

NYSE:SYK traded up $2.40 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $393.47. 333,314 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,528,647. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $376.55 and a 200-day simple moving average of $362.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $150.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.17, a P/E/G ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a quick ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. Stryker has a 1 year low of $314.93 and a 1 year high of $406.19.

Stryker (NYSE:SYK) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The medical technology company reported $4.01 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.87 by $0.14. Stryker had a return on equity of 23.07% and a net margin of 16.34%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.46 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Stryker will post 12.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Kevin Lobo sold 57,313 shares of Stryker stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $368.70, for a total value of $21,131,303.10. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 100,027 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $36,879,954.90. The trade was a 36.43 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 5.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Stryker

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Zhang Financial LLC grew its position in Stryker by 55.0% during the fourth quarter. Zhang Financial LLC now owns 114,889 shares of the medical technology company’s stock valued at $41,366,000 after acquiring an additional 40,784 shares during the period. Dale Q Rice Investment Management Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Stryker in the fourth quarter worth about $587,000. Berkshire Bank lifted its stake in shares of Stryker by 13.8% in the fourth quarter. Berkshire Bank now owns 8,489 shares of the medical technology company’s stock worth $3,056,000 after acquiring an additional 1,030 shares in the last quarter. PFW Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Stryker in the fourth quarter worth about $1,350,000. Finally, Traynor Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Stryker in the fourth quarter worth about $324,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.09% of the company’s stock.

Stryker Company Profile

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.