McKesson Co. (NYSE:MCK) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of McKesson Co. (NYSE:MCK) have earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the fifteen ratings firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $649.36.

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Citigroup cut their target price on McKesson from $713.00 to $677.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on McKesson from $612.00 to $642.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Evercore ISI upped their target price on McKesson from $650.00 to $675.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on McKesson from $641.00 to $691.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Mizuho assumed coverage on McKesson in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $630.00 price objective for the company.

McKesson Stock Performance

Shares of McKesson stock opened at $650.96 on Wednesday. McKesson has a 52-week low of $464.42 and a 52-week high of $663.62. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $608.54 and its 200 day simple moving average is $570.95. The stock has a market capitalization of $81.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.81, a P/E/G ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.52.

McKesson (NYSE:MCK) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $8.03 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $8.60 by ($0.57). McKesson had a net margin of 0.82% and a negative return on equity of 181.26%. Equities research analysts forecast that McKesson will post 32.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McKesson Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.71 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $2.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.44%. McKesson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 13.00%.

Insider Activity at McKesson

In other McKesson news, EVP Leann B. Smith sold 579 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $572.79, for a total value of $331,645.41. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 864 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $494,890.56. This represents a 40.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Brian S. Tyler sold 8,961 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $600.66, for a total value of $5,382,514.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 69,625 shares in the company, valued at $41,820,952.50. This trade represents a 11.40 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 18,689 shares of company stock valued at $11,187,351 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.11% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. CWA Asset Management Group LLC bought a new stake in McKesson during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $416,000. Assetmark Inc. lifted its stake in shares of McKesson by 10.8% during the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 6,884 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,403,000 after acquiring an additional 670 shares during the last quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of McKesson by 198.7% during the 3rd quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,055 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,016,000 after acquiring an additional 1,367 shares during the last quarter. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP lifted its stake in shares of McKesson by 34.5% during the 3rd quarter. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP now owns 557 shares of the company’s stock worth $276,000 after acquiring an additional 143 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Chartwell Investment Partners LLC bought a new stake in McKesson during the 3rd quarter valued at $3,856,000. Institutional investors own 85.07% of the company’s stock.

McKesson Company Profile

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.