Wells Fargo & Company MN Sells 15,020 Shares of Smith & Nephew plc (NYSE:SNN)

Wells Fargo & Company MN decreased its stake in Smith & Nephew plc (NYSE:SNN) by 3.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 470,908 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after selling 15,020 shares during the quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN owned approximately 0.11% of Smith & Nephew worth $11,575,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Principal Securities Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Smith & Nephew by 87.6% in the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,480 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 691 shares in the last quarter. R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in Smith & Nephew in the fourth quarter valued at about $41,000. National Bank of Canada FI grew its stake in Smith & Nephew by 36.5% during the fourth quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 1,667 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 446 shares during the last quarter. Hara Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Smith & Nephew by 391.4% during the fourth quarter. Hara Capital LLC now owns 2,457 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $60,000 after buying an additional 1,957 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of Smith & Nephew by 31.8% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,975 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $73,000 after acquiring an additional 718 shares during the last quarter. 25.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on SNN shares. Canaccord Genuity Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $27.00 price target on shares of Smith & Nephew in a report on Monday, March 17th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Smith & Nephew from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, UBS Group cut Smith & Nephew from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $27.00.

Smith & Nephew Price Performance

Shares of SNN stock opened at $26.00 on Wednesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $27.39 and a 200-day moving average of $26.54. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 2.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 0.71. Smith & Nephew plc has a 12-month low of $23.65 and a 12-month high of $31.72.

Smith & Nephew Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 28th will be given a $0.447 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 28th. This is a positive change from Smith & Nephew’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.29. This represents a dividend yield of 2.5%. Smith & Nephew’s payout ratio is currently 41.20%.

Smith & Nephew 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.