Fresenius Medical Care (NYSE:FMS) Now Covered by StockNews.com

StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Fresenius Medical Care (NYSE:FMS) in a research note issued to investors on Saturday morning. The brokerage issued a strong-buy rating on the stock.

Separately, Morgan Stanley lowered Fresenius Medical Care from an equal weight rating to an underweight rating in a research report on Monday, January 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $32.25.

Fresenius Medical Care Price Performance

Fresenius Medical Care stock opened at $20.12 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.87, a PEG ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 0.95. The business has a 50-day moving average of $19.66 and a 200-day moving average of $19.65. The company has a current ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. Fresenius Medical Care has a 1 year low of $16.37 and a 1 year high of $27.72.

Fresenius Medical Care (NYSE:FMS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 20th. The company reported $0.47 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $5.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.32 billion. Fresenius Medical Care had a net margin of 2.56% and a return on equity of 4.99%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Fresenius Medical Care will post 1.49 EPS for the current year.

Fresenius Medical Care Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced an annual dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, May 20th will be given a $0.437 dividend. This represents a yield of 2.35%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 17th. Fresenius Medical Care’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 45.65%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Fresenius Medical Care

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of FMS. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Fresenius Medical Care by 14,252.1% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 488,401 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,173,000 after purchasing an additional 484,998 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Fresenius Medical Care by 362.2% during the 3rd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 259,033 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,580,000 after purchasing an additional 202,991 shares during the last quarter. Moran Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Fresenius Medical Care in the 4th quarter valued at about $3,247,000. Guardian Capital Advisors LP lifted its stake in Fresenius Medical Care by 16.7% in the 4th quarter. Guardian Capital Advisors LP now owns 123,715 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,556,000 after purchasing an additional 17,725 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Partnership Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Fresenius Medical Care during the fourth quarter worth about $2,340,000. 8.25% of the stock is currently 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.