Apella Capital LLC Sells 54 Shares of Stryker Co. (NYSE:SYK)

Apella Capital LLC decreased its position in Stryker Co. (NYSE:SYK) by 1.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,590 shares of the medical technology company’s stock after selling 54 shares during the period. Apella Capital LLC’s holdings in Stryker were worth $1,653,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SYK. Dunhill Financial LLC boosted its position in shares of Stryker by 94.9% in the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 76 shares of the medical technology company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Centennial Bank AR boosted its holdings in Stryker by 106.7% during the second quarter. Centennial Bank AR now owns 93 shares of the medical technology company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Stryker during the 3rd quarter worth about $36,000. HBW Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Stryker in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Finally, Hara Capital LLC bought a new position in Stryker during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $42,000. 77.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Stryker Stock Up 0.5 %

Stryker stock opened at $362.68 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 1.91 and a quick ratio of 1.22. The company’s 50-day moving average is $375.13 and its 200-day moving average is $358.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $138.26 billion, a PE ratio of 38.87, a P/E/G ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.95. Stryker Co. has a fifty-two week low of $307.23 and a fifty-two week high of $398.20.

Stryker (NYSE:SYK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The medical technology company reported $2.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.77 by $0.10. Stryker had a return on equity of 23.07% and a net margin of 16.34%. The firm had revenue of $5.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.37 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.46 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Stryker Co. will post 12.06 earnings per share for the current year.

Stryker Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be issued a $0.84 dividend. This is an increase from Stryker’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.80. This represents a $3.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.93%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. Stryker’s payout ratio is currently 36.01%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Stryker from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 9th. JMP Securities restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Stryker in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Stryker from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the company from $370.00 to $445.00 in a report on Monday, December 2nd. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of Stryker from $380.00 to $384.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, BTIG Research increased their target price on Stryker from $383.00 to $394.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $405.80.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Kevin Lobo sold 57,313 shares of Stryker stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $368.70, for a total transaction of $21,131,303.10. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 100,027 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $36,879,954.90. This trade represents a 36.43 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 5.90% of the company’s stock.

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.