Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Boosts Holdings in McKesson Co. (NYSE:MCK)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of McKesson Co. (NYSE:MCK) by 25.9% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 17,244 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,547 shares during the quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in McKesson were worth $10,071,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of MCK. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in shares of McKesson by 1.1% in the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,362,837 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,342,190,000 after purchasing an additional 46,659 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in McKesson during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,024,140,000. Putnam Investments LLC lifted its stake in McKesson by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Putnam Investments LLC now owns 1,997,963 shares of the company’s stock valued at $925,017,000 after buying an additional 62,242 shares during the last quarter. Swedbank AB acquired a new stake in shares of McKesson in the first quarter valued at approximately $669,326,000. Finally, Boston Partners grew its position in shares of McKesson by 4.1% during the first quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,183,829 shares of the company’s stock worth $635,763,000 after acquiring an additional 47,140 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.07% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of McKesson from $596.00 to $616.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Leerink Partners dropped their price target on McKesson from $670.00 to $665.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. Evercore ISI decreased their price objective on McKesson from $660.00 to $630.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Argus boosted their target price on McKesson from $570.00 to $670.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 24th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on shares of McKesson from $694.00 to $671.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, McKesson has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $622.07.

McKesson Trading Down 0.7 %

Shares of MCK opened at $505.73 on Wednesday. McKesson Co. has a twelve month low of $417.65 and a twelve month high of $637.51. The firm has a market capitalization of $65.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.60, a PEG ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 0.44. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $571.62 and its two-hundred day moving average is $557.91.

McKesson (NYSE:MCK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The company reported $7.88 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.21 by $0.67. The firm had revenue of $79.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $82.53 billion. McKesson had a negative return on equity of 242.57% and a net margin of 0.94%. McKesson’s quarterly revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $7.27 EPS. Analysts predict that McKesson Co. will post 32.14 EPS for the current year.

McKesson Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Monday, September 2nd will be paid a $0.71 dividend. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.56%. This is a boost from McKesson’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.62. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 30th. McKesson’s dividend payout ratio is presently 12.69%.

Insider Buying and Selling at McKesson

In other McKesson news, CEO Brian S. Tyler sold 3,753 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $626.03, for a total value of $2,349,490.59. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 82,339 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $51,546,684.17. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In the last three months, insiders sold 11,259 shares of company stock worth $6,635,492. 0.11% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.