Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Decreases Position in Medical Properties Trust, Inc. $MPW

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System lessened its position in Medical Properties Trust, Inc. (NYSE:MPW) by 52.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 95,105 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 105,706 shares during the quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in Medical Properties Trust were worth $482,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Wilsey Asset Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Medical Properties Trust by 6.4% in the third quarter. Wilsey Asset Management Inc. now owns 5,240,579 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $26,570,000 after purchasing an additional 313,011 shares in the last quarter. Caxton Associates LLP boosted its stake in Medical Properties Trust by 115.4% during the second quarter. Caxton Associates LLP now owns 617,826 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $2,663,000 after buying an additional 330,946 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC boosted its stake in Medical Properties Trust by 1,184.1% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 340,305 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,725,000 after buying an additional 313,803 shares during the last quarter. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co purchased a new stake in Medical Properties Trust in the 2nd quarter valued at $691,000. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP increased its stake in shares of Medical Properties Trust by 39.5% in the 2nd quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 655,883 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $2,827,000 after acquiring an additional 185,877 shares during the last quarter. 71.79% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Medical Properties Trust Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of MPW opened at $5.12 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $5.26 and its 200 day moving average price is $4.87. Medical Properties Trust, Inc. has a 12-month low of $3.95 and a 12-month high of $6.34. The company has a current ratio of 2.68, a quick ratio of 2.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.06. The firm has a market cap of $3.08 billion, a P/E ratio of -4.33 and a beta of 1.43.

Medical Properties Trust (NYSE:MPW) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.13 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.16 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $237.52 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $244.89 million. Medical Properties Trust had a negative return on equity of 14.82% and a negative net margin of 75.76%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.16 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Medical Properties Trust, Inc. will post 0.78 earnings per share for the current year.

Medical Properties Trust Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 8th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 11th were paid a dividend of $0.09 per share. This represents a $0.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.0%. This is a positive change from Medical Properties Trust’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.08. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 11th. Medical Properties Trust’s payout ratio is currently -30.51%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MPW has been the topic of several recent research reports. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Medical Properties Trust in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Medical Properties Trust from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, January 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Medical Properties Trust from $4.50 to $5.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $6.17.

About Medical Properties Trust

Medical Properties Trust, Inc is a real estate investment trust (REIT) focused on acquiring, financing, and owning net-leased hospital facilities. Through sale-leaseback transactions, direct acquisitions and recapitalizations, the company provides capital to healthcare operators while maintaining long-term, triple-net lease agreements. Its portfolio encompasses general acute care hospitals, rehabilitation facilities and other healthcare-related real estate assets and is structured to deliver stable, long-duration rental income streams.

Founded in 2003 and based in Birmingham, Alabama, Medical Properties Trust completed its initial public offering in 2004.