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 report published on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the stock.

ELV has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Elevance Health in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Truist Financial restated a “buy” rating and set a $520.00 target price (down previously from $620.00) on shares of Elevance Health in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Barclays dropped their price target on Elevance Health from $622.00 to $501.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. UBS Group dropped their price target on Elevance Health from $605.00 to $555.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed an “underperform” rating on shares of Elevance Health in a research note on Friday, October 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $551.07.

Elevance Health Price Performance

Elevance Health stock opened at $425.27 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a current ratio of 1.49. Elevance Health has a 52 week low of $397.98 and a 52 week high of $567.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $98.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 0.82. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $515.15 and a 200-day moving average of $524.55.

Elevance Health (NYSE:ELV) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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). The firm had revenue of $44.72 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $43.47 billion. Elevance Health had a return on equity of 20.64% and a net margin of 3.89%. The company’s revenue was up 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $8.99 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Elevance Health will post 37.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Elevance Health Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 5th will be issued a $1.63 dividend. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.53%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 5th. Elevance Health’s dividend payout ratio is presently 24.64%.

Insider Activity

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Elevance Health

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ELV. Bank & Trust Co bought a new position in Elevance Health during the second quarter valued at $27,000. PSI Advisors LLC bought a new position in Elevance Health during the third quarter valued at $27,000. Palisade Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Elevance Health during the first quarter valued at $28,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Elevance Health during the second quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Strategic Financial Concepts LLC bought a new position in Elevance Health during the second quarter valued at $30,000. 89.24% of the stock is owned by 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.