Ledyard National Bank Increases Stock Position in Stryker Co. (NYSE:SYK)

Ledyard National Bank boosted its stake in Stryker Co. (NYSE:SYK) by 8.8% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 1,881 shares of the medical technology company’s stock after buying an additional 152 shares during the quarter. Ledyard National Bank’s holdings in Stryker were worth $563,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bremer Bank National Association lifted its stake in shares of Stryker by 4.0% during the fourth quarter. Bremer Bank National Association now owns 888 shares of the medical technology company’s stock valued at $266,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the period. Simon Quick Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Stryker by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. Simon Quick Advisors LLC now owns 1,158 shares of the medical technology company’s stock valued at $347,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the period. Consolidated Portfolio Review Corp lifted its stake in shares of Stryker by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. Consolidated Portfolio Review Corp now owns 983 shares of the medical technology company’s stock valued at $294,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the period. MBL Wealth LLC lifted its stake in shares of Stryker by 4.6% during the fourth quarter. MBL Wealth LLC now owns 850 shares of the medical technology company’s stock valued at $255,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the period. Finally, PDS Planning Inc lifted its stake in shares of Stryker by 3.0% during the third quarter. PDS Planning Inc now owns 1,318 shares of the medical technology company’s stock valued at $360,000 after buying an additional 38 shares during the period. 77.09% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Stryker Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of SYK traded down $1.22 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $337.65. The company had a trading volume of 662,857 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,278,814. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $348.68 and its 200 day moving average price is $316.14. The stock has a market cap of $128.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.09, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.89. Stryker Co. has a 52 week low of $249.98 and a 52 week high of $361.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59.

Stryker (NYSE:SYK) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The medical technology company reported $3.46 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.27 by $0.19. The company had revenue of $5.82 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.60 billion. Stryker had a net margin of 15.44% and a return on equity of 22.99%. The company’s revenue was up 11.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.00 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Stryker Co. will post 11.86 EPS for the current year.

Stryker Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 29th will be given a $0.80 dividend. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 27th. Stryker’s payout ratio is currently 38.79%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Stryker from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Stryker from $336.00 to $364.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of Stryker from $360.00 to $386.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, April 15th. TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of Stryker from $365.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Stryker from $362.00 to $406.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $340.67.

Insider Transactions at Stryker

In other news, CAO William E. Berry, Jr. sold 7,690 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $358.48, for a total value of $2,756,711.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,675 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,317,414. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CAO William E. Berry, Jr. sold 7,690 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $358.48, for a total transaction of $2,756,711.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,675 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,317,414. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Allan C. Golston sold 3,273 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $341.00, for a total transaction of $1,116,093.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 14,242 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,856,522. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 212,109 shares of company stock valued at $72,845,768. Insiders own 5.50% of the company’s stock.

Stryker 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.