McKesson (NYSE:MCK) Upgraded by StockNews.com to Strong-Buy Rating

StockNews.com upgraded shares of McKesson (NYSE:MCK) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a report issued on Tuesday morning.

Other research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of McKesson from $642.00 to $745.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Bank of America lifted their price objective on McKesson from $755.00 to $800.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Cfra Research cut McKesson from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, April 4th. UBS Group lifted their price target on McKesson from $708.00 to $805.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of McKesson from $641.00 to $691.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $686.69.

McKesson Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MCK opened at $705.78 on Tuesday. McKesson has a 52-week low of $464.42 and a 52-week high of $728.48. The business has a fifty day moving average of $681.75 and a two-hundred day moving average of $625.19. The stock has a market cap of $88.45 billion, a PE ratio of 32.32, a PEG ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.53.

McKesson (NYSE:MCK) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported $10.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.83 by $0.29. The business had revenue of $90.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $94 billion. McKesson had a net margin of 0.82% and a negative return on equity of 181.26%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $6.18 EPS. Analysts predict that McKesson will post 32.77 earnings per share for the current year.

McKesson Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 2nd will be paid a $0.71 dividend. This represents a $2.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.40%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 2nd. McKesson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 10.99%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other McKesson news, CEO Brian S. Tyler sold 8,961 shares of McKesson stock in a transaction on Friday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $597.99, for a total transaction of $5,358,588.39. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 60,664 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $36,276,465.36. The trade was a 12.87% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.11% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Czech National Bank grew its position in shares of McKesson by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 27,524 shares of the company’s stock worth $15,686,000 after buying an additional 1,108 shares during the period. Brookstone Capital Management boosted its stake in McKesson by 42.8% during the 4th quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 10,473 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,969,000 after acquiring an additional 3,137 shares during the last quarter. Capital Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in McKesson by 29.0% during the fourth quarter. Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,379 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,356,000 after purchasing an additional 535 shares during the period. Wedmont Private Capital increased its stake in McKesson by 9.8% in the fourth quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 2,003 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,165,000 after purchasing an additional 179 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bar Harbor Wealth Management acquired a new stake in McKesson in the fourth quarter worth $221,000. 85.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About McKesson

McKesson Corporation provides healthcare services in the United States and internationally. It operates through four segments: U.S. Pharmaceutical, Prescription Technology Solutions (RxTS), Medical-Surgical Solutions, and International. The U.S. Pharmaceutical segment distributes branded, generic, specialty, biosimilar and over-the-counter pharmaceutical drugs, and other healthcare-related products.