Ascent Wealth Partners LLC Sells 163 Shares of Elevance Health, Inc. (NYSE:ELV)

Ascent Wealth Partners LLC lowered its stake in Elevance Health, Inc. (NYSE:ELV) by 16.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 858 shares of the company’s stock after selling 163 shares during the quarter. Ascent Wealth Partners LLC’s holdings in Elevance Health were worth $317,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Raelipskie Partnership bought a new position in Elevance Health in the 3rd quarter worth about $26,000. Eastern Bank bought a new position in Elevance Health in the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new position in Elevance Health in the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. Dunhill Financial LLC boosted its stake in Elevance Health by 57.8% in the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 71 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares during the period. Finally, Peterson Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in Elevance Health in the 3rd quarter worth about $44,000. Institutional investors own 89.24% of the company’s stock.

Elevance Health Stock Down 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE:ELV opened at $385.04 on Friday. Elevance Health, Inc. has a 52-week low of $362.21 and a 52-week high of $567.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $89.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.03, a P/E/G ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 0.83. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $385.25 and a 200-day moving average price of $443.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 1.50 and a current ratio of 1.45.

Elevance Health (NYSE:ELV) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The company reported $3.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.80 by $0.04. Elevance Health had a return on equity of 18.28% and a net margin of 3.38%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Elevance Health, Inc. will post 33.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Elevance Health Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a dividend of $1.71 per share. This represents a $6.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.78%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. This is a positive change from Elevance Health’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. Elevance Health’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.46%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently commented on ELV. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Elevance Health from $483.00 to $478.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Stephens lowered shares of Elevance Health from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $520.00 to $440.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Argus reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $405.40 price objective on shares of Elevance Health in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Mizuho lowered their price target on Elevance Health from $585.00 to $505.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on Elevance Health from $501.00 to $512.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $517.03.

Elevance Health Company Profile

Elevance Health, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a health benefits company in the United States. The company operates through four segments: Health Benefits, CarelonRx, Carelon Services, and Corporate & Other. It offers a variety of health plans and services to program members; health products; an array of fee-based administrative managed care services; and specialty and other insurance products and services, such as stop loss, dental, vision, life, disability, and supplemental health insurance benefits.