Medical Properties Trust (NYSE:MPW) Shares Down 2.3% – Should You Sell?

Medical Properties Trust, Inc. (NYSE:MPW) shares traded down 2.3% during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $3.72 and last traded at $3.74. 2,135,903 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 87% from the average session volume of 16,350,663 shares. The stock had previously closed at $3.83.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on MPW. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on shares of Medical Properties Trust from $6.00 to $4.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Colliers Securities upgraded Medical Properties Trust from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $6.50 price objective for the company in a research report on Friday, September 13th. Mizuho dropped their price target on shares of Medical Properties Trust from $6.00 to $5.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, Wolfe Research upgraded Medical Properties Trust to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, September 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $4.92.

Medical Properties Trust Trading Down 2.6 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a current ratio of 2.38 and a quick ratio of 2.38. The business’s 50-day moving average is $4.38 and its 200 day moving average is $4.74. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.24 billion, a P/E ratio of -0.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.62 and a beta of 1.29.

Medical Properties Trust Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 9th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 12th will be given a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 12th. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 8.58%. Medical Properties Trust’s dividend payout ratio is currently -7.58%.

Insider Activity

In other Medical Properties Trust news, Director Michael G. Stewart sold 32,780 shares of Medical Properties Trust stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.46, for a total transaction of $178,978.80. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 221,245 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,207,997.70. The trade was a 12.90 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.53% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Medical Properties Trust

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of MPW. Ables Iannone Moore & Associates Inc. raised its stake in shares of Medical Properties Trust by 3.4% during the third quarter. Ables Iannone Moore & Associates Inc. now owns 58,707 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $343,000 after acquiring an additional 1,939 shares during the last quarter. Wolverine Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Medical Properties Trust by 0.6% during the 2nd quarter. Wolverine Asset Management LLC now owns 405,145 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,746,000 after purchasing an additional 2,246 shares in the last quarter. KG&L Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Medical Properties Trust by 5.3% during the 3rd quarter. KG&L Capital Management LLC now owns 50,875 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $298,000 after purchasing an additional 2,550 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its position in shares of Medical Properties Trust by 1.9% during the second quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 167,722 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $723,000 after buying an additional 3,103 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of Medical Properties Trust by 107.3% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 6,077 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 3,145 shares during the period. 71.79% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Medical Properties Trust

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.