StockNews.com Upgrades Smith & Nephew (NYSE:SNN) to “Strong-Buy”

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Smith & Nephew (NYSE:SNN) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday morning.

Several other brokerages have also commented on SNN. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered Smith & Nephew from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Canaccord Genuity Group reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $27.00 target price on shares of Smith & Nephew in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Berenberg Bank lowered Smith & Nephew from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $27.00.

Smith & Nephew Stock Up 2.9 %

Shares of NYSE SNN opened at $28.92 on Wednesday. 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 50-day moving average price of $25.19 and a 200 day moving average price of $27.23. Smith & Nephew has a 52 week low of $23.65 and a 52 week high of $31.72. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 0.84.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Smith & Nephew

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of SNN. Principal Securities Inc. increased its stake 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. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Smith & Nephew in the fourth quarter worth about $41,000. National Bank of Canada FI grew its position in Smith & Nephew by 36.5% in the fourth quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 1,667 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 446 shares in the last quarter. Hara Capital LLC grew its position in Smith & Nephew by 391.4% in the fourth quarter. Hara Capital LLC now owns 2,457 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $60,000 after acquiring an additional 1,957 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of Smith & Nephew by 31.8% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,975 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $73,000 after purchasing an additional 718 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 25.64% of the company’s stock.

About Smith & Nephew

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.