Medifast, Inc. (NYSE:MED – Get Rating) declared a quarterly dividend on Friday, September 9th, Wall Street Journal reports. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 20th will be paid a dividend of 1.64 per share by the specialty retailer on Tuesday, November 8th. This represents a $6.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.51%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 19th.
Medifast has raised its dividend payment by an average of 37.4% annually over the last three years and has raised its dividend every year for the last 2 years. Medifast has a dividend payout ratio of 49.1% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect Medifast to earn $13.36 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $6.56 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 49.1%.
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Medifast Price Performance
Shares of NYSE MED opened at $118.96 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $1.31 billion, a PE ratio of 8.82 and a beta of 1.18. Medifast has a fifty-two week low of $116.50 and a fifty-two week high of $235.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a current ratio of 1.29. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $145.06 and a 200-day moving average of $166.96.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on MED shares. Jefferies Financial Group cut Medifast from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their price target for the company from $345.00 to $150.00 in a research report on Thursday, August 4th. DA Davidson reduced their price target on Medifast from $352.00 to $278.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 4th. StockNews.com raised Medifast from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, September 1st. Finally, TheStreet lowered Medifast from a "b" rating to a "c+" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 23rd.
Insider Activity at Medifast
In other Medifast news, Director Jeffrey J. Brown acquired 3,940 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 9th. The stock was bought at an average price of $126.54 per share, with a total value of $498,567.60. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 3,940 shares of the company's stock, valued at $498,567.60. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, Director Jeffrey J. Brown purchased 3,940 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 9th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $126.54 per share, with a total value of $498,567.60. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 3,940 shares in the company, valued at approximately $498,567.60. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Jeffrey J. Brown purchased 399 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 4th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $146.01 per share, with a total value of $58,257.99. Following the purchase, the director now owns 35,938 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,247,307.38. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 2.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.
Institutional Investors Weigh In On Medifast
Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MED. BlackRock Inc. lifted its stake in Medifast by 6.9% during the first quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 2,134,513 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $364,532,000 after purchasing an additional 138,602 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Medifast by 131.4% in the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 67,374 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $11,506,000 after acquiring an additional 38,257 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Medifast by 1.5% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,521,936 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $259,916,000 after acquiring an additional 22,630 shares during the last quarter. Clark Estates Inc. NY purchased a new position in Medifast during the 1st quarter valued at about $2,510,000. Finally, Millennium Management LLC increased its holdings in Medifast by 787.6% during the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 14,991 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $2,706,000 after purchasing an additional 13,302 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 87.66% of the company's stock.
About Medifast
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Medifast, Inc, through its subsidiaries, manufactures and distributes weight loss, weight management, healthy living products, and other consumable health and nutritional products in the United States and the Asia-Pacific. The company offers bars, bites, pretzels, puffs, cereal crunch, drinks, hearty choices, oatmeal, pancakes, pudding, soft serves, shakes, smoothies, soft bakes, and soups under the OPTAVIA, Optimal Health by Take Shape for Life, and Flavors of Home brands.
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