Smith & Nephew plc (NYSE:SNN) Plans Dividend Increase – $0.45 Per Share

Smith & Nephew plc (NYSE:SNN) announced a semi-annual dividend on Wednesday, February 26th, Wall Street Journal reports. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 28th will be paid a dividend of 0.447 per share by the medical equipment provider on Wednesday, May 28th. This represents a dividend yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 28th. This is a 55.2% increase from Smith & Nephew’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.29.

Smith & Nephew has a dividend payout ratio of 42.6% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect Smith & Nephew to earn $2.00 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.92 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 46.0%.

Smith & Nephew Stock Performance

Smith & Nephew stock opened at $28.44 on Wednesday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $26.94 and a 200-day moving average of $27.00. The company has a market capitalization of $12.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.17, a P/E/G ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 0.83. Smith & Nephew has a 1 year low of $23.65 and a 1 year high of $31.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 2.51 and a quick ratio of 1.11.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have issued reports on SNN. UBS Group cut shares of Smith & Nephew from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Canaccord Genuity Group restated a “hold” rating and issued a $27.00 price objective on shares of Smith & Nephew in a report on Monday, March 17th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Smith & Nephew from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $27.00.

Smith & Nephew Company Profile

Smith & Nephew plc engages in the development, manufacture, marketing, and sale of medical devices. It operates through the following segments: Orthopaedics, Sports Medicine and ENT, and Advanced Wound Management. The Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine and ENT segment consists of the following businesses: knee implants, hip implants, other reconstruction, trauma, sports medicine joint repair, arthroscopic enabling technologies, and ENT.