Fresenius Medical Care (NYSE:FMS) Upgraded at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Fresenius Medical Care (NYSE:FMS) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a report published on Tuesday morning.

Separately, Morgan Stanley lowered shares of Fresenius Medical Care from an equal weight rating to an underweight rating in a research note on Monday, January 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $32.25.

Fresenius Medical Care Trading Up 2.2 %

NYSE:FMS opened at $19.39 on Tuesday. Fresenius Medical Care has a one year low of $16.37 and a one year high of $27.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.42. The firm has a market cap of $11.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.08, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.00. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $19.52 and a 200-day simple moving average of $19.48.

Fresenius Medical Care (NYSE:FMS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 20th. The company reported $0.47 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.36 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $5.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.32 billion. Fresenius Medical Care had a net margin of 2.56% and a return on equity of 4.99%. Equities analysts anticipate that Fresenius Medical Care will post 1.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fresenius Medical Care Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed an annual dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, May 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.437 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 17th. This represents a dividend yield of 2.35%. Fresenius Medical Care’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 45.65%.

Institutional Trading of Fresenius Medical Care

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Comerica Bank acquired a new position in Fresenius Medical Care during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $140,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC acquired a new position in Fresenius Medical Care during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Hartford Financial Management Inc. increased its stake in Fresenius Medical Care by 98.8% during the 4th quarter. Hartford Financial Management Inc. now owns 1,688 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 839 shares in the last quarter. Quilter Plc acquired a new position in Fresenius Medical Care during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $1,824,421,000. Finally, Clear Street Markets LLC acquired a new position in Fresenius Medical Care during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 8.25% of the company’s stock.

About Fresenius Medical Care

Fresenius Medical Care AG provides dialysis and related services for individuals with renal diseases in Germany, North America, and internationally. The company offers dialysis treatment and related laboratory and diagnostic services through a network of outpatient dialysis clinics; materials, training, and patient support services comprising clinical monitoring, follow-up assistance, and arranging for delivery of the supplies to the patient's residence; and dialysis services under contract to hospitals in the United States for the hospitalized end-stage renal disease (ESRD) patients and for patients suffering from acute kidney failure.