Prudential Financial Inc. Sells 209,905 Shares of Elevance Health, Inc. (NYSE:ELV)

Prudential Financial Inc. lowered its position in Elevance Health, Inc. (NYSE:ELV) by 61.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 132,470 shares of the company’s stock after selling 209,905 shares during the quarter. Prudential Financial Inc.’s holdings in Elevance Health were worth $48,868,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of ELV. Mutual Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Elevance Health by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC now owns 2,163 shares of the company’s stock worth $833,000 after buying an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Czech National Bank grew its holdings in Elevance Health by 6.5% during the 4th quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 50,286 shares of the company’s stock worth $18,551,000 after acquiring an additional 3,049 shares in the last quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. increased its position in Elevance Health by 1,711.9% during the 3rd quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 53,559 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,858,000 after purchasing an additional 50,603 shares during the period. Diversified Trust Co raised its holdings in shares of Elevance Health by 13.7% in the 4th quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 22,576 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,328,000 after purchasing an additional 2,725 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JB Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Elevance Health by 597.2% in the 4th quarter. JB Capital LLC now owns 9,384 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,462,000 after purchasing an additional 8,038 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 89.24% of the company’s stock.

Elevance Health Stock Performance

Shares of ELV opened at $423.03 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 1.50 and a current ratio of 1.45. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $401.73 and a two-hundred day moving average of $422.80. The stock has a market cap of $96.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.52, a P/E/G ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 0.86. Elevance Health, Inc. has a one year low of $362.21 and a one year high of $567.26.

Elevance Health (NYSE:ELV) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The company reported $3.84 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.80 by $0.04. Elevance Health had a return on equity of 18.28% and a net margin of 3.38%. As a group, research analysts predict that Elevance Health, Inc. will post 33.96 EPS for the current year.

Elevance Health Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th were paid a $1.71 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. This represents a $6.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.62%. This is a positive change from Elevance Health’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. Elevance Health’s dividend payout ratio is presently 26.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Charles Morgan Kendrick, Jr. sold 3,504 shares of Elevance Health stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $396.30, for a total transaction of $1,388,635.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,116 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,008,970.80. This trade represents a 25.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Ronald W. Penczek sold 443 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $415.13, for a total transaction of $183,902.59. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 1,847 shares in the company, valued at $766,745.11. The trade was a 19.34 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.35% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on ELV shares. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $485.00 price objective on shares of Elevance Health in a report on Friday, January 24th. Stephens downgraded Elevance Health from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and cut their price target for the company from $520.00 to $440.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. StockNews.com upgraded Elevance Health from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Argus raised Elevance Health from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $450.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Finally, Truist Financial reduced their target price on shares of Elevance Health from $520.00 to $480.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Two equities research analysts have 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 MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $519.81.

Elevance Health Profile

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.