ResMed (NYSE:RMD) Coverage Initiated by Analysts at Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of ResMed (NYSE:RMD) in a research report released on Wednesday, MarketBeat reports. The firm issued an overweight rating and a $280.00 price target on the medical equipment provider’s stock.

Several other research firms also recently commented on RMD. Citigroup raised ResMed from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of ResMed in a research note on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group upgraded shares of ResMed from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on shares of ResMed from $250.00 to $240.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of ResMed from $270.00 to $286.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, ResMed presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $246.83.

ResMed Stock Performance

Shares of RMD opened at $222.07 on Wednesday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $235.48 and its 200-day simple moving average is $239.36. ResMed has a 12-month low of $172.19 and a 12-month high of $263.05. The firm has a market cap of $32.61 billion, a PE ratio of 26.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a current ratio of 3.33, a quick ratio of 2.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13.

ResMed (NYSE:RMD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.29 by $0.14. ResMed had a net margin of 25.34% and a return on equity of 26.17%. As a group, equities analysts predict that ResMed will post 9.47 EPS for the current year.

ResMed Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 20th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 13th will be issued a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 13th. ResMed’s dividend payout ratio is currently 25.03%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Michael J. Farrell sold 8,009 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $236.77, for a total value of $1,896,290.93. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 455,472 shares in the company, valued at $107,842,105.44. This trade represents a 1.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Peter C. Farrell sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $242.11, for a total transaction of $484,220.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 77,218 shares in the company, valued at $18,695,249.98. This represents a 2.52 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 38,940 shares of company stock valued at $9,164,385. 0.71% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its stake in ResMed by 2,200.0% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 115 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC raised its holdings in shares of ResMed by 6,250.0% in the fourth quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 127 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Optiver Holding B.V. purchased a new stake in shares of ResMed in the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. boosted its stake in shares of ResMed by 1,000.0% during the fourth quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. now owns 165 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. Finally, OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in ResMed during the 4th quarter worth about $39,000. 54.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

ResMed Company Profile

ResMed Inc develops, manufactures, distributes, and markets medical devices and cloud-based software applications for the healthcare markets. The company operates in two segments, Sleep and Respiratory Care, and Software as a Service. It offers various products and solutions for a range of respiratory disorders, including ApneaLink Air, a portable diagnostic device that measures oximetry, respiratory effort, pulse, nasal flow, and snoring; and NightOwl, a portable, cloud-connected, and disposable diagnostic device that measures AHI based on derived peripheral arterial tone, actigraphy, and oximetry over several nights.