Elevance Health, Inc. (NYSE:ELV) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Elevance Health, Inc. (NYSE:ELV) have earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the ten research firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and nine have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $569.00.

ELV has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Barclays initiated coverage on Elevance Health in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $584.00 target price for the company. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $580.00 target price on shares of Elevance Health in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. StockNews.com cut Elevance Health from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 25th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Elevance Health from $561.00 to $557.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Elevance Health from $572.00 to $574.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 25th.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Ramiro G. Peru sold 753 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total value of $376,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 9,109 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,554,500. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Elevance Health

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of Elevance Health during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Elevance Health during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Fortis Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Elevance Health in the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Householder Group Estate & Retirement Specialist LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Elevance Health in the 3rd quarter worth $30,000. Finally, TD Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Elevance Health in the 4th quarter worth $30,000. 89.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Elevance Health Stock Performance

Shares of ELV opened at $525.19 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $508.63 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $482.59. The stock has a market cap of $122.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.87, a PEG ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 0.78. Elevance Health has a 52 week low of $412.00 and a 52 week high of $539.11.

Elevance Health (NYSE:ELV) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 24th. The company reported $5.62 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.60 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $42.45 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $42.19 billion. Elevance Health had a return on equity of 20.47% and a net margin of 3.49%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $5.23 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that Elevance Health will post 37.03 EPS for the current year.

Elevance Health Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 8th were issued a dividend of $1.63 per share. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.24%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 7th. This is a boost from Elevance Health’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.48. Elevance Health’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 25.90%.

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.