AIMZ Investment Advisors LLC Reduces Stake in Stryker Co. (NYSE:SYK)

AIMZ Investment Advisors LLC lessened its stake in Stryker Co. (NYSE:SYK) by 1.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 9,292 shares of the medical technology company’s stock after selling 141 shares during the quarter. Stryker makes up approximately 1.2% of AIMZ Investment Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest holding. AIMZ Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Stryker were worth $3,346,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Linscomb Wealth Inc. boosted its stake in Stryker by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Linscomb Wealth Inc. now owns 15,846 shares of the medical technology company’s stock worth $5,705,000 after buying an additional 154 shares in the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Stryker by 57.1% during the fourth quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 96,251 shares of the medical technology company’s stock valued at $34,655,000 after buying an additional 35,002 shares during the last quarter. Alecta Tjanstepension Omsesidigt purchased a new position in shares of Stryker in the fourth quarter worth about $63,556,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Stryker by 52,520.8% in the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 596,194 shares of the medical technology company’s stock valued at $214,660,000 after acquiring an additional 595,061 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kovack Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Stryker by 8.7% during the 4th quarter. Kovack Advisors Inc. now owns 726 shares of the medical technology company’s stock valued at $261,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.09% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Stryker

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SYK has been the subject of several analyst reports. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their price target on shares of Stryker from $420.00 to $435.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. StockNews.com cut Stryker from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Stryker from $420.00 to $445.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Morgan Stanley upgraded Stryker from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $370.00 to $445.00 in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $442.00 price target on shares of Stryker in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $422.15.

Stryker Trading Down 0.7 %

SYK stock opened at $389.10 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.32, a current ratio of 1.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. Stryker Co. has a 52-week low of $314.93 and a 52-week high of $406.19. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $380.06 and its 200-day simple moving average is $370.50. The firm has a market cap of $148.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 50.14, a PEG ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.96.

Stryker (NYSE:SYK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The medical technology company reported $4.01 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 period in the prior year, the company earned $3.46 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Stryker Co. will post 13.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Stryker Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.84 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $3.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.86%. Stryker’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.