Elevance Health (NYSE:ELV) Cut to Hold at Argus

Argus cut shares of Elevance Health (NYSE:ELV) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report sent to investors on Friday morning, Marketbeat.com reports.

A number of other equities analysts have also commented on ELV. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $600.00 price target on shares of Elevance Health in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $615.00 price target on shares of Elevance Health in a report on Thursday, September 5th. TD Cowen dropped their price target on shares of Elevance Health from $624.00 to $589.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 19th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Elevance Health from $600.00 to $593.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of Elevance Health in a report on Monday, June 24th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $643.00 price objective on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $572.27.

Elevance Health Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ELV opened at $430.77 on Friday. Elevance Health has a one year low of $397.98 and a one year high of $567.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $100.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.28, a PEG ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 0.82. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $526.74 and a 200 day simple moving average of $527.81. The company has a current ratio of 1.49, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58.

Elevance Health (NYSE:ELV) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The company reported $8.37 earnings per share (EPS) 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 analyst estimates of $43.47 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $8.99 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Elevance Health will post 37.26 EPS for the current year.

Elevance Health Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 5th will be given 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 yield of 1.51%. Elevance Health’s dividend payout ratio is presently 24.64%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Ramiro G. Peru sold 753 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $531.52, for a total transaction of $400,234.56. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 8,744 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,647,610.88. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Charles Morgan Kendrick, Jr. sold 7,417 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, October 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $432.14, for a total value 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. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Ramiro G. Peru sold 753 shares of the business’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 sale, the director now directly owns 8,744 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,647,610.88. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Elevance Health

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ELV. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Elevance Health by 5.3% in the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 3,791,793 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,054,641,000 after acquiring an additional 190,118 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors raised its holdings in Elevance Health by 3.7% in the first quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 3,498,511 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,814,118,000 after buying an additional 123,802 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its stake in shares of Elevance Health by 2.9% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 2,247,091 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,217,607,000 after purchasing an additional 64,376 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its stake in shares of Elevance Health by 34.0% in the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,062,706 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,117,698,000 after purchasing an additional 523,910 shares during the period. Finally, First Eagle Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Elevance Health by 15.5% during the 2nd quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 2,058,283 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,115,301,000 after purchasing an additional 275,708 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.