Stryker (NYSE:SYK) Downgraded to Hold Rating by StockNews.com

Stryker (NYSE:SYK) was downgraded by StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Tuesday.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Stryker from $420.00 to $445.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Stryker from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $370.00 to $445.00 in a report on Monday, December 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Stryker from $427.00 to $435.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Stryker in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, UBS Group increased their target price on Stryker from $366.00 to $370.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Stryker presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $422.15.

Stryker Price Performance

Shares of SYK traded up $2.65 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $390.57. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,665,048 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,394,543. The company has a quick ratio of 1.32, a current ratio of 1.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. Stryker has a one year low of $314.93 and a one year high of $406.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $149.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.96. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $378.78 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $370.22.

Stryker (NYSE:SYK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The medical technology company reported $4.01 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.87 by $0.14. Stryker had a return on equity of 23.58% and a net margin of 13.25%. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.46 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Stryker will post 13.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Stryker news, Director Allan C. Golston sold 2,458 shares of Stryker stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $383.07, for a total value of $941,586.06. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 14,895 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,705,827.65. The trade was a 14.16 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Ronda E. Stryker sold 201,392 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $392.24, for a total value of $78,993,998.08. Following the transaction, the director now owns 3,642,075 shares in the company, valued at $1,428,567,498. The trade was a 5.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 5.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Stryker

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of SYK. Chicago Capital LLC raised its position in Stryker by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Chicago Capital LLC now owns 195,052 shares of the medical technology company’s stock valued at $70,228,000 after buying an additional 5,841 shares during the last quarter. Zhang Financial LLC lifted its position in shares of Stryker by 55.0% during the fourth quarter. Zhang Financial LLC now owns 114,889 shares of the medical technology company’s stock valued at $41,366,000 after purchasing an additional 40,784 shares in the last quarter. Appleton Partners Inc. MA grew its position in Stryker by 5.0% in the 4th quarter. Appleton Partners Inc. MA now owns 29,222 shares of the medical technology company’s stock worth $10,521,000 after purchasing an additional 1,400 shares in the last quarter. Dale Q Rice Investment Management Ltd purchased a new stake in Stryker in the 4th quarter valued at about $587,000. Finally, Berkshire Bank boosted its stake in shares of Stryker by 13.8% in the 4th quarter. Berkshire Bank now owns 8,489 shares of the medical technology company’s stock worth $3,056,000 after buying an additional 1,030 shares during the last quarter. 77.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Stryker Company Profile

Stryker Corporation operates as a medical technology company. The company operates through two segments, MedSurg and Neurotechnology, and Orthopaedics and Spine. The Orthopaedics and Spine segment provides implants for use in total joint replacements, such as hip, knee and shoulder, and trauma and extremities surgeries.