Sterling Capital Management LLC Invests $265,000 in Smith & Nephew plc (NYSE:SNN)

Sterling Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Smith & Nephew plc (NYSE:SNN) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 10,767 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock, valued at approximately $265,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Smith & Nephew by 4.6% in the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 9,120 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $224,000 after purchasing an additional 399 shares during the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI increased its holdings in Smith & Nephew by 36.5% in the 4th 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 in the last quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC raised its position in Smith & Nephew by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 17,704 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $435,000 after buying an additional 596 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC lifted its stake in Smith & Nephew by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 15,772 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $388,000 after acquiring an additional 653 shares during the period. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Smith & Nephew by 87.6% during the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,480 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 691 shares during the last quarter. 25.64% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Smith & Nephew from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Canaccord Genuity Group reissued a “hold” rating and set a $27.00 price target on shares of Smith & Nephew in a report on Monday, March 17th. Finally, UBS Group downgraded Smith & Nephew from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $27.00.

Smith & Nephew Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE SNN opened at $25.90 on Monday. Smith & Nephew plc has a 12-month low of $23.69 and a 12-month high of $31.72. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a current ratio of 2.51, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $27.45 and a 200 day moving average of $26.41.

Smith & Nephew Increases Dividend

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