Medical Properties Trust Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NYSE:MPW)

Medical Properties Trust, Inc. (NYSE:MPW) was the target of unusually large options trading activity on Friday. Traders acquired 84,525 put options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 25% compared to the typical daily volume of 67,652 put options.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Medical Properties Trust

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Arizona State Retirement System increased its stake in shares of Medical Properties Trust by 1.4% during the third quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 170,355 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $928,000 after purchasing an additional 2,304 shares during the period. abrdn plc increased its stake in shares of Medical Properties Trust by 2.1% during the third quarter. abrdn plc now owns 125,218 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $682,000 after purchasing an additional 2,622 shares during the period. Collective Family Office LLC increased its stake in shares of Medical Properties Trust by 16.8% during the first quarter. Collective Family Office LLC now owns 21,720 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $102,000 after purchasing an additional 3,120 shares during the period. Amalgamated Bank increased its stake in shares of Medical Properties Trust by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 376,806 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,850,000 after purchasing an additional 3,322 shares during the period. Finally, United Services Automobile Association increased its stake in shares of Medical Properties Trust by 9.7% during the third quarter. United Services Automobile Association now owns 42,220 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $230,000 after purchasing an additional 3,721 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 71.79% of the company’s stock.

Medical Properties Trust Stock Performance

Shares of Medical Properties Trust stock opened at $4.87 on Friday. Medical Properties Trust has a 52 week low of $2.92 and a 52 week high of $10.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 2.26 and a current ratio of 2.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -5.18, a PEG ratio of 0.55 and a beta of 1.19. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $4.39 and a two-hundred day moving average of $4.32.

Medical Properties Trust Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 22nd were paid a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 12.32%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 19th. Medical Properties Trust’s payout ratio is -63.83%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MPW has been the topic of several analyst reports. Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of Medical Properties Trust from $4.00 to $4.50 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, April 8th. Colliers Securities lowered shares of Medical Properties Trust from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $10.00 to $4.25 in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Medical Properties Trust from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, February 22nd. BNP Paribas raised shares of Medical Properties Trust from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $6.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, March 1st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on shares of Medical Properties Trust from $8.00 to $5.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $5.75.

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.