Elevance Health (NYSE:ELV) Given New $551.00 Price Target at Morgan Stanley

Elevance Health (NYSE:ELV) had its price target cut by Morgan Stanley from $643.00 to $551.00 in a research note released on Wednesday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the stock.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Bank of America reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $530.00 price target (down previously from $646.00) on shares of Elevance Health in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Stephens reiterated an “underperform” rating on shares of Elevance Health in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on shares of Elevance Health from $585.00 to $478.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Cantor Fitzgerald reduced their price target on shares of Elevance Health from $600.00 to $485.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Raymond James set a $485.00 price objective on shares of Elevance Health in a research note on Friday, October 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $551.07.

Elevance Health Trading Down 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE:ELV opened at $415.54 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.49, a current ratio of 1.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $519.97 and its 200 day moving average price is $525.88. The company has a market cap of $96.58 billion, a PE ratio of 15.70, a P/E/G ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 0.82. Elevance Health has a fifty-two week low of $397.98 and a fifty-two week high of $567.26.

Elevance Health (NYSE:ELV) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The company reported $8.37 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.66 by ($1.29). Elevance Health had a net margin of 3.89% and a return on equity of 20.64%. The business had revenue of $44.72 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $43.47 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $8.99 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Elevance Health will post 37.26 earnings per share for the current year.

Elevance Health Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 5th will be issued a dividend of $1.63 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 5th. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.57%. Elevance Health’s dividend payout ratio is currently 24.64%.

Insider Activity at Elevance Health

In other Elevance Health news, EVP Charles Morgan Kendrick, Jr. sold 7,417 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $432.14, for a total transaction of $3,205,182.38. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 8,423 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,639,915.22. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Elevance Health news, EVP Charles Morgan Kendrick, Jr. sold 7,417 shares of Elevance Health stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $432.14, for a total transaction of $3,205,182.38. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 8,423 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,639,915.22. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Ramiro G. Peru sold 753 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $531.52, for a total value of $400,234.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 8,744 shares in the company, valued at $4,647,610.88. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.35% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Elevance Health

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of ELV. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC grew its stake in Elevance Health by 8.8% in the first quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 248 shares of the company’s stock valued at $129,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Bedel Financial Consulting Inc. grew its stake in shares of Elevance Health by 1.6% in the 1st quarter. Bedel Financial Consulting Inc. now owns 1,247 shares of the company’s stock valued at $647,000 after buying an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. American Trust increased its holdings in Elevance Health by 2.6% in the first quarter. American Trust now owns 775 shares of the company’s stock worth $402,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC raised its position in Elevance Health by 3.6% during the first quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC now owns 611 shares of the company’s stock valued at $315,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ascent Wealth Partners LLC lifted its stake in Elevance Health by 1.8% in the first quarter. Ascent Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,193 shares of the company’s stock valued at $619,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. 89.24% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Elevance Health

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.