Eastern Bank Sells 137 Shares of McKesson Co. (NYSE:MCK)

Eastern Bank reduced its position in McKesson Co. (NYSE:MCK) by 26.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 384 shares of the company’s stock after selling 137 shares during the quarter. Eastern Bank’s holdings in McKesson were worth $219,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Claro Advisors LLC increased its holdings in McKesson by 7.7% in the 4th quarter. Claro Advisors LLC now owns 2,571 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,465,000 after buying an additional 183 shares during the period. Accelerate Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in McKesson in the 4th quarter valued at about $371,000. Cooper Financial Group increased its holdings in McKesson by 7.3% in the 4th quarter. Cooper Financial Group now owns 2,778 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,583,000 after buying an additional 188 shares during the period. Wedmont Private Capital increased its holdings in McKesson by 9.8% in the 4th quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 2,003 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,165,000 after buying an additional 179 shares during the period. Finally, Talbot Financial LLC bought a new position in McKesson in the 4th quarter valued at about $200,000. 85.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Evercore ISI raised their price target on shares of McKesson from $560.00 to $680.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of McKesson from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Leerink Partners reduced their price target on shares of McKesson from $665.00 to $630.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of McKesson from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price target for the company from $531.00 to $688.00 in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of McKesson from $535.00 to $641.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $646.14.

McKesson Price Performance

NYSE:MCK opened at $594.11 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $595.09 and its 200 day simple moving average is $560.90. McKesson Co. has a one year low of $464.42 and a one year high of $637.51. The company has a market cap of $75.42 billion, a PE ratio of 30.77, a P/E/G ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 0.52.

McKesson (NYSE:MCK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The company reported $7.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.88 by $0.19. The firm had revenue of $93.65 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $89.33 billion. McKesson had a net margin of 0.77% and a negative return on equity of 207.50%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 21.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $6.23 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that McKesson Co. will post 32.73 EPS for the current year.

McKesson Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were given a $0.71 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.48%. McKesson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 14.71%.

Insider Transactions at McKesson

In other news, EVP Leann B. Smith sold 579 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $602.81, for a total value of $349,026.99. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 1,443 shares in the company, valued at approximately $869,854.83. The trade was a 28.64 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.11% of the company’s stock.

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.