The Goldman Sachs Group Initiates Coverage on Elevance Health (NYSE:ELV)

Equities researchers at The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Elevance Health (NYSE:ELV) in a research note issued on Tuesday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The firm set a “neutral” rating and a $343.00 price target on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group’s price target would suggest a potential downside of 1.85% from the company’s previous close.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Elevance Health from $330.00 to $370.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 10th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Elevance Health from $373.00 to $395.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 9th. Mizuho upped their price target on shares of Elevance Health from $342.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Elevance Health from $472.00 to $384.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Argus reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Elevance Health in a report on Monday, July 21st. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $408.33.

Elevance Health Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ELV opened at $349.46 on Tuesday. Elevance Health has a 12-month low of $273.71 and a 12-month high of $497.34. The company has a market cap of $78.69 billion, a PE ratio of 14.87, a P/E/G ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 0.59. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $319.56 and a 200-day simple moving average of $357.50. The company has a current ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64.

Elevance Health (NYSE:ELV) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The company reported $8.84 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $9.30 by ($0.46). Elevance Health had a net margin of 2.83% and a return on equity of 17.59%. The business had revenue of $49.42 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $48.26 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $10.12 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 14.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Elevance Health will post 33.96 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Gail Boudreaux bought 8,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 18th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $286.94 per share, with a total value of $2,438,990.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 151,020 shares in the company, valued at approximately $43,333,678.80. The trade was a 5.96% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Susan D. Devore purchased 1,200 shares of Elevance Health stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 19th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $312.15 per share, with a total value of $374,580.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 3,502 shares in the company, valued at $1,093,149.30. This represents a 52.13% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Private Wealth Management Group LLC lifted its stake in Elevance Health by 152.0% in the 1st quarter. Private Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 63 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. WPG Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Elevance Health in the first quarter worth approximately $29,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Elevance Health by 94.9% in the second quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 76 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Elevance Health during the second quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, North Capital Inc. purchased a new position in Elevance Health during the first quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.24% 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.