Medical Properties Trust (NYSE:MPW) Upgraded at BNP Paribas

BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Medical Properties Trust (NYSE:MPW) from a neutral rating to an outperform rating in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. They currently have $9.00 target price on the real estate investment trust’s stock, up from their prior target price of $5.00.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on MPW. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Medical Properties Trust from $4.00 to $5.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. StockNews.com raised Medical Properties Trust from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Truist Financial dropped their price objective on Medical Properties Trust from $6.00 to $4.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Medical Properties Trust from $4.00 to $5.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Finally, 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $5.64.

Medical Properties Trust Stock Performance

Shares of MPW opened at $5.87 on Wednesday. Medical Properties Trust has a 1 year low of $3.51 and a 1 year high of $6.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.52 billion, a PE ratio of -1.39, a PEG ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 1.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a quick ratio of 2.38 and a current ratio of 2.38. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $4.80 and a 200-day simple moving average of $4.73.

Medical Properties Trust Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.46%. Medical Properties Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -8.42%.

Insider Activity at Medical Properties Trust

In other Medical Properties Trust news, CAO James Kevin Hanna sold 11,641 shares of Medical Properties Trust stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.72, for a total value of $43,304.52. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 366,913 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,364,916.36. The trade was a 3.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 1.53% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Medical Properties Trust

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Indie Asset Partners LLC lifted its position in Medical Properties Trust by 16.7% during the 4th quarter. Indie Asset Partners LLC now owns 15,384 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $61,000 after acquiring an additional 2,204 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Medical Properties Trust by 6.6% during the fourth quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 39,252 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $155,000 after purchasing an additional 2,438 shares during the period. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV lifted its holdings in shares of Medical Properties Trust by 5.6% during the fourth quarter. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV now owns 49,953 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $186,000 after purchasing an additional 2,661 shares during the period. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. grew its position in Medical Properties Trust by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. now owns 111,490 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $440,000 after buying an additional 2,948 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanderbilt University increased its stake in Medical Properties Trust by 7.5% in the 4th quarter. Vanderbilt University now owns 44,813 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $177,000 after buying an additional 3,117 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.79% of the company’s stock.

Medical Properties Trust Company Profile

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.