Koninklijke Philips (NYSE:PHG) Upgraded to “Strong-Buy” at Sanford C. Bernstein

Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Koninklijke Philips (NYSE:PHG) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a research report released on Tuesday morning,Zacks.com reports.

Several other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Koninklijke Philips from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 8th. UBS Group upgraded shares of Koninklijke Philips from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Koninklijke Philips from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy”.

Koninklijke Philips Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE PHG opened at $25.88 on Tuesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $26.74 and a 200-day moving average price of $27.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 1.23 and a quick ratio of 0.74. The stock has a market cap of $24.32 billion, a PE ratio of -30.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 0.78. Koninklijke Philips has a 1 year low of $19.10 and a 1 year high of $32.91.

Koninklijke Philips (NYSE:PHG) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The technology company reported $0.54 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.55 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $5.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.10 billion. Koninklijke Philips had a negative net margin of 3.88% and a positive return on equity of 10.85%. Equities analysts anticipate that Koninklijke Philips will post 1.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Koninklijke Philips Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed an annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.886 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 13th. This represents a yield of 2.9%. Koninklijke Philips’s payout ratio is -89.29%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Colonial Trust Co SC increased its position in Koninklijke Philips by 724.0% during the 4th quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 1,409 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 1,238 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in Koninklijke Philips during the 3rd quarter valued at about $54,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its position in Koninklijke Philips by 37.1% during the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 2,150 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 582 shares during the period. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Koninklijke Philips during the 4th quarter valued at about $55,000. Finally, Millstone Evans Group LLC purchased a new position in Koninklijke Philips during the 4th quarter valued at about $60,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 13.67% of the company’s stock.

Koninklijke Philips Company Profile

Koninklijke Philips N.V. operates as a health technology company in North America, the Greater China, and internationally. The company operates through Diagnosis & Treatment Businesses, Connected Care Businesses, and Personal Health Businesses segments. It also provides diagnostic imaging solutions, includes magnetic resonance imaging, X-ray systems, and computed tomography (CT) systems and software comprising detector-based spectral CT solutions, as well as molecular and hybrid imaging solutions for nuclear medicine; echography solutions focused on diagnosis, treatment planning and guidance for cardiology, general imaging, obstetrics/gynecology, and point-of-care applications; integrated interventional systems, and interventional diagnostic and therapeutic devices to treat coronary artery and peripheral vascular disease.