Searle & CO. Has $1.53 Million Stock Position in Elevance Health, Inc. (NYSE:ELV)

Searle & CO. grew its stake in Elevance Health, Inc. (NYSE:ELV) by 1.8% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,826 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the quarter. Searle & CO.’s holdings in Elevance Health were worth $1,531,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bank & Trust Co acquired a new stake in Elevance Health during the 2nd quarter worth $27,000. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Elevance Health during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Palisade Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Elevance Health during the 1st quarter worth $28,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Elevance Health during the 2nd quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Elevance Health during the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.24% of the company’s stock.

Elevance Health Stock Performance

ELV stock traded up $4.80 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $556.89. 1,226,379 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,017,118. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $532.05 and a 200-day simple moving average of $524.68. The company has a current ratio of 1.49, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. The stock has a market capitalization of $129.43 billion, a PE ratio of 21.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 0.84. Elevance Health, Inc. has a 1-year low of $431.38 and a 1-year high of $557.60.

Elevance Health (NYSE:ELV) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 17th. The company reported $10.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $9.99 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $43.22 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $42.99 billion. Elevance Health had a net margin of 3.89% and a return on equity of 20.64%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $9.04 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Elevance Health, Inc. will post 37.25 earnings per share for the current year.

Elevance Health Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 10th will be given a dividend of $1.63 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 10th. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.17%. Elevance Health’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 24.64%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently commented on ELV shares. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Elevance Health from $600.00 to $593.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Elevance Health from $628.00 to $631.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Baird R W raised Elevance Health to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Barclays dropped their price target on Elevance Health from $621.00 to $611.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Finally, Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $615.00 price objective on shares of Elevance Health in a report on Tuesday, June 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $604.29.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Robert L. Dixon, Jr. sold 305 shares of Elevance Health stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $506.76, for a total value of $154,561.80. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 9,721 shares in the company, valued at $4,926,213.96. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Elevance Health news, CEO Gail Boudreaux sold 34,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.98, for a total transaction of $17,033,320.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 126,709 shares in the company, valued at $63,478,674.82. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Robert L. Dixon, Jr. sold 305 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, July 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $506.76, for a total transaction of $154,561.80. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 9,721 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,926,213.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 35,058 shares of company stock worth $17,588,116 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

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.