Avestar Capital LLC Purchases 258 Shares of McKesson Co. (NYSE:MCK)

Avestar Capital LLC increased its position in shares of McKesson Co. (NYSE:MCK) by 20.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,526 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 258 shares during the period. Avestar Capital LLC’s holdings in McKesson were worth $871,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of MCK. Synergy Asset Management LLC bought a new position in McKesson in the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of McKesson in the third quarter worth $29,000. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new position in McKesson during the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC increased its position in McKesson by 742.9% during the third quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 59 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares during the period. Finally, RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new stake in McKesson in the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. 85.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at McKesson

In related news, EVP Leann B. Smith sold 579 shares of McKesson stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $602.81, for a total value of $349,026.99. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,443 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $869,854.83. The trade was a 28.64 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 1,346 shares of company stock worth $795,275. Insiders own 0.11% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently issued reports on MCK. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of McKesson from $535.00 to $641.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Robert W. Baird upgraded McKesson from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $531.00 to $688.00 in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Bank of America reduced their price objective on McKesson from $680.00 to $650.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on McKesson from $612.00 to $642.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their target price on McKesson from $650.00 to $675.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $645.79.

McKesson Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of McKesson stock opened at $602.73 on Friday. McKesson Co. has a 12-month low of $464.42 and a 12-month high of $637.51. The stock has a market capitalization of $76.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $587.56 and a 200 day simple moving average of $562.90.

McKesson (NYSE:MCK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $8.03 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $8.60 by ($0.57). McKesson had a negative return on equity of 181.26% and a net margin of 0.82%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that McKesson Co. will post 32.69 earnings per share for the current year.

McKesson Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be paid a $0.71 dividend. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.47%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. McKesson’s dividend payout ratio is currently 13.00%.

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.