Stack Financial Management Inc Sells 507 Shares of Stryker Co. (NYSE:SYK)

Stack Financial Management Inc trimmed its holdings in Stryker Co. (NYSE:SYK) by 0.7% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 74,797 shares of the medical technology company’s stock after selling 507 shares during the period. Stryker comprises 2.5% of Stack Financial Management Inc’s holdings, making the stock its 11th biggest position. Stack Financial Management Inc’s holdings in Stryker were worth $26,931,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Dunhill Financial LLC increased its holdings in shares of Stryker by 94.9% in the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 76 shares of the medical technology company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Centricity Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Stryker during the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. BankPlus Trust Department acquired a new position in Stryker in the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Stryker in the 3rd quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, Activest Wealth Management acquired a new stake in Stryker during the fourth quarter worth approximately $36,000. 77.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Stryker

In other news, Director Ronda E. Stryker sold 201,392 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $392.24, for a total transaction of $78,993,998.08. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 3,642,075 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,428,567,498. The trade was a 5.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Allan C. Golston sold 2,458 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $383.07, for a total transaction of $941,586.06. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 14,895 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,705,827.65. This trade represents a 14.16 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 5.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on SYK. StockNews.com downgraded Stryker from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. BTIG Research increased their price objective on Stryker from $383.00 to $394.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Argus set a $450.00 target price on Stryker in a report on Monday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Stryker from $420.00 to $445.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Stryker from $418.00 to $443.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $422.15.

Stryker Stock Performance

Stryker stock opened at $388.11 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.32, a current ratio of 1.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The stock has a market cap of $148.09 billion, a PE ratio of 50.01, a P/E/G ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.96. Stryker Co. has a 12-month low of $314.93 and a 12-month high of $406.19. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $378.38 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $369.78.

Stryker (NYSE:SYK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The medical technology company reported $4.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.87 by $0.14. Stryker had a net margin of 13.25% and a return on equity of 23.58%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.46 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Stryker Co. will post 13.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Stryker Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a $0.84 dividend. This represents a $3.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.87%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. Stryker’s payout ratio is 43.30%.

About Stryker

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.