HighPoint Advisor Group LLC Increases Holdings in Stryker Co. (NYSE:SYK)

HighPoint Advisor Group LLC grew its holdings in Stryker Co. (NYSE:SYK) by 28.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 4,356 shares of the medical technology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 975 shares during the quarter. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC’s holdings in Stryker were worth $1,701,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in SYK. Rodgers Brothers Inc. increased its stake in Stryker by 14.1% in the fourth quarter. Rodgers Brothers Inc. now owns 1,217 shares of the medical technology company’s stock valued at $438,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. Cannell & Spears LLC raised its stake in Stryker by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Cannell & Spears LLC now owns 4,697 shares of the medical technology company’s stock worth $1,691,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Summit Financial LLC raised its stake in Stryker by 236.9% during the 4th quarter. Summit Financial LLC now owns 24,456 shares of the medical technology company’s stock worth $8,826,000 after acquiring an additional 17,196 shares in the last quarter. Hoey Investments Inc. acquired a new position in Stryker in the fourth quarter valued at $125,000. Finally, AIA Group Ltd acquired a new position in Stryker in the fourth quarter valued at $295,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.09% of the company’s stock.

Stryker Stock Performance

Shares of SYK opened at $372.73 on Tuesday. 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 has a 50-day simple moving average of $383.86 and a 200-day simple moving average of $374.41. The company has a market capitalization of $142.27 billion, a PE ratio of 48.03, a P/E/G ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.95.

Stryker (NYSE:SYK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The medical technology company reported $4.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.46 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Stryker Co. will post 13.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Stryker Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a $0.84 dividend. This represents a $3.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.90%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. Stryker’s dividend payout ratio is currently 43.30%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently weighed in on SYK. Morgan Stanley raised Stryker from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $370.00 to $445.00 in a report on Monday, December 2nd. Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $450.00 price objective on shares of Stryker in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. StockNews.com cut shares of Stryker from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. JMP Securities reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Stryker in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Argus set a $450.00 target price on shares of Stryker in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $421.90.

Insider Transactions at Stryker

In related news, Director Ronda E. Stryker sold 201,392 shares of Stryker stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $392.24, for a total transaction of $78,993,998.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,642,075 shares in the company, valued at $1,428,567,498. The trade was a 5.24 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Allan C. Golston sold 2,458 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $383.07, for a total value of $941,586.06. Following the sale, the director now owns 14,895 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,705,827.65. This trade represents a 14.16 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 5.90% 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.