Fresenius Medical Care (NYSE:FMS) Shares Gap Down to $21.48

Fresenius Medical Care AG (NYSE:FMS) gapped down prior to trading on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $21.48, but opened at $20.98. Fresenius Medical Care shares last traded at $20.90, with a volume of 62,603 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have issued reports on FMS. Morgan Stanley cut Fresenius Medical Care from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 8th. StockNews.com raised Fresenius Medical Care from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Fresenius Medical Care currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $32.25.

Fresenius Medical Care Stock Performance

The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $19.55 and its 200-day simple moving average is $19.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.42. The company has a market capitalization of $12.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.50, a P/E/G ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 1.00.

Fresenius Medical Care (NYSE:FMS) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 20th. The company reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.36 by $0.11. Fresenius Medical Care had a net margin of 2.56% and a return on equity of 4.99%. The company had revenue of $5.37 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.32 billion. Analysts expect that Fresenius Medical Care AG will post 1.51 EPS for the current year.

Fresenius Medical Care Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced an annual dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.437 per share. This represents a yield of 2.35%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 17th. Fresenius Medical Care’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 46.74%.

Institutional Trading of Fresenius Medical Care

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FMS. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Fresenius Medical Care during the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Hartford Financial Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Fresenius Medical Care by 98.8% during the 4th quarter. Hartford Financial Management Inc. now owns 1,688 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 839 shares in the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its holdings in shares of Fresenius Medical Care by 349.3% during the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,314 shares of the company’s stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 1,799 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new position in shares of Fresenius Medical Care during the 4th quarter valued at $67,000. Finally, Assetmark Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Fresenius Medical Care by 169.9% during the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 4,178 shares of the company’s stock valued at $87,000 after acquiring an additional 2,630 shares in the last quarter. 8.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Fresenius Medical Care Company Profile

Fresenius Medical Care AG provides dialysis and related services for individuals with renal diseases in Germany, North America, and internationally. The company offers dialysis treatment and related laboratory and diagnostic services through a network of outpatient dialysis clinics; materials, training, and patient support services comprising clinical monitoring, follow-up assistance, and arranging for delivery of the supplies to the patient's residence; and dialysis services under contract to hospitals in the United States for the hospitalized end-stage renal disease (ESRD) patients and for patients suffering from acute kidney failure.