Principal Financial Group Inc. Decreases Stake in Medical Properties Trust, Inc. (NYSE:MPW)

Principal Financial Group Inc. cut its holdings in shares of Medical Properties Trust, Inc. (NYSE:MPW) by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 2,825,349 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 122,055 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Medical Properties Trust were worth $16,528,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Medical Properties Trust by 8.2% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 93,058,174 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $437,373,000 after purchasing an additional 7,084,981 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in Medical Properties Trust by 4.0% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 8,622,683 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $37,168,000 after buying an additional 328,184 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in Medical Properties Trust by 22.6% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 6,908,362 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $29,775,000 after acquiring an additional 1,274,481 shares during the period. Wilsey Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Medical Properties Trust by 27.2% during the second quarter. Wilsey Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,376,180 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $18,861,000 after acquiring an additional 936,631 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Goldentree Asset Management LP bought a new position in shares of Medical Properties Trust in the first quarter worth $15,966,000. Institutional investors own 71.79% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Medical Properties Trust

In related news, Director Elizabeth N. Pitman acquired 8,087 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 18th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $6.01 per share, with a total value of $48,602.87. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 76,740 shares in the company, valued at $461,207.40. This trade represents a 11.78 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Michael G. Stewart sold 32,780 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.46, for a total transaction of $178,978.80. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 221,245 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,207,997.70. This trade represents a 12.90 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.53% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently issued reports on MPW. Colliers Securities upgraded Medical Properties Trust from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $6.50 price objective on the stock in a research note on Friday, September 13th. Wolfe Research upgraded Medical Properties Trust to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. Finally, Truist Financial increased their price target on shares of Medical Properties Trust from $5.00 to $6.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $5.50.

Medical Properties Trust Trading Up 0.7 %

Shares of MPW opened at $4.31 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $5.14 and its 200 day simple moving average is $4.91. The company has a market capitalization of $2.59 billion, a P/E ratio of -1.02, a P/E/G ratio of 0.68 and a beta of 1.32. Medical Properties Trust, Inc. has a 1-year low of $2.92 and a 1-year high of $6.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a current ratio of 2.38 and a quick ratio of 2.93.

Medical Properties Trust Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 10th. Investors of record on Monday, September 9th were paid a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 9th. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.42%. Medical Properties Trust’s dividend payout ratio is presently -7.58%.

Medical Properties Trust Company Profile

Medical Properties Trust, Inc is a self-advised real estate investment trust formed in 2003 to acquire and develop net-leased hospital facilities. From its inception in Birmingham, Alabama, the Company has grown to become one of the world's largest owners of hospital real estate with 441 facilities and approximately 44,000 licensed beds as of September 30, 2023.