Medical Properties Trust, Inc. (NYSE:MPW) Announces Quarterly Dividend of $0.15

Medical Properties Trust, Inc. (NYSE:MPW) declared a quarterly dividend on Friday, April 12th, Wall Street Journal reports. Investors of record on Monday, April 22nd will be given a dividend of 0.15 per share by the real estate investment trust on Wednesday, May 1st. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 12.99%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 19th.

Medical Properties Trust has decreased its dividend payment by an average of 1.6% per year over the last three years. Medical Properties Trust has a payout ratio of 111.1% indicating that the company cannot currently cover its dividend with earnings alone and is relying on its balance sheet to cover its dividend payments. Equities research analysts expect Medical Properties Trust to earn $1.18 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.60 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 50.8%.

Medical Properties Trust Stock Performance

NYSE:MPW opened at $4.62 on Wednesday. Medical Properties Trust has a fifty-two week low of $2.92 and a fifty-two week high of $10.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 2.26 and a current ratio of 2.26. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $4.11 and its 200 day moving average is $4.36.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of Medical Properties Trust from $4.00 to $4.50 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, April 8th. Mizuho reduced their price target on Medical Properties Trust from $9.00 to $7.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 3rd. StockNews.com lowered Medical Properties Trust from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on Medical Properties Trust from $8.00 to $5.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. Finally, KeyCorp reiterated a “sector weight” rating on shares of Medical Properties Trust in a research report on Friday, January 5th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Medical Properties Trust presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $5.48.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Advisors Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Medical Properties Trust in the 3rd quarter valued at $28,000. Harbour Investments Inc. boosted its position in Medical Properties Trust by 1,247.4% during the fourth quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 4,608 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $51,000 after purchasing an additional 4,266 shares in the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its stake in Medical Properties Trust by 43.9% in the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 5,402 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $60,000 after purchasing an additional 1,649 shares during the last quarter. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Medical Properties Trust in the first quarter worth about $85,000. Finally, State of Wyoming purchased a new stake in shares of Medical Properties Trust during the fourth quarter valued at about $93,000. 71.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Medical Properties Trust

Medical Properties Trust, Inc is a self-advised real estate investment trust formed in 2003 to acquire and develop net-leased hospital facilities. From its inception in Birmingham, Alabama, the Company has grown to become one of the world's largest owners of hospital real estate with 441 facilities and approximately 44,000 licensed beds as of September 30, 2023.