Q1 EPS Estimates for Elevance Health Cut by Zacks Research

Elevance Health, Inc. (NYSE:ELV) – Stock analysts at Zacks Research decreased their Q1 2026 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of Elevance Health in a note issued to investors on Tuesday, February 10th. Zacks Research analyst Team now forecasts that the company will earn $10.40 per share for the quarter, down from their previous forecast of $11.38. Zacks Research currently has a “Hold” rating on the stock. The consensus estimate for Elevance Health’s current full-year earnings is $33.96 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Elevance Health’s Q2 2026 earnings at $6.30 EPS, FY2026 earnings at $25.53 EPS, Q1 2027 earnings at $10.45 EPS, Q2 2027 earnings at $7.20 EPS, Q4 2027 earnings at $4.75 EPS and FY2027 earnings at $28.40 EPS.

ELV has been the subject of several other research reports. Leerink Partners lifted their target price on shares of Elevance Health from $350.00 to $357.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Guggenheim lowered their price target on Elevance Health from $414.00 to $396.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Elevance Health from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, February 8th. UBS Group set a $400.00 target price on Elevance Health in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Truist Financial dropped their target price on Elevance Health from $400.00 to $390.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Elevance Health presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $390.55.

Elevance Health Price Performance

Elevance Health stock opened at $336.24 on Thursday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $351.89 and its 200-day simple moving average is $331.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 1.56 and a current ratio of 1.54. Elevance Health has a 1 year low of $273.71 and a 1 year high of $458.75. The company has a market capitalization of $74.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 0.50.

Elevance Health (NYSE:ELV) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The company reported $3.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.10 by $0.23. Elevance Health had a net margin of 2.84% and a return on equity of 15.59%. The firm had revenue of $49.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $49.52 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $3.84 EPS. Elevance Health’s revenue was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. Elevance Health has set its FY 2026 guidance at 25.500- EPS.

Institutional Trading of Elevance Health

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in ELV. Blair William & Co. IL increased its position in shares of Elevance Health by 3.0% in the 2nd quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 6,260 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,435,000 after purchasing an additional 180 shares during the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc grew its stake in shares of Elevance Health by 6.8% during the second quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 704 shares of the company’s stock worth $300,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. MGO One Seven LLC increased its holdings in Elevance Health by 2.0% in the second quarter. MGO One Seven LLC now owns 2,755 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,072,000 after buying an additional 53 shares during the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC raised its stake in Elevance Health by 2.4% in the second quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 6,880 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,676,000 after buying an additional 163 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Moran Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Elevance Health during the 2nd quarter worth about $7,558,000. 89.24% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Elevance Health Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 25th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 10th will be paid a $1.72 dividend. This represents a $6.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 10th. This is a boost from Elevance Health’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.71. Elevance Health’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.23%.

Key Elevance Health News

Here are the key news stories impacting Elevance Health this week:

• Positive Sentiment: MSN published a bullish take highlighting two reasons to like ELV (and one caution). The piece frames the company’s recent operational strength and valuation as positives that support the stock’s move higher. 2 reasons to like ELV (and 1 not so much)
• Positive Sentiment: Recent reported results: ELV beat Q3/Q4 consensus on EPS ($3.33 vs. $3.10) and posted ~9.6% revenue growth year-over-year; management set FY2026 EPS guidance around $25.50 — these items underpin investor confidence in near-term profitability and support valuation (PE ~13.4).
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks issued a mixture of tweaks to quarterly models — it raised a few near‑term quarter estimates (e.g., Q4 2027 and Q3 2027 uplift) while leaving a “Hold” rating in place. Those isolated raises offer limited upside until broader guidance/trajectory is confirmed.
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks materially trimmed several near‑term and full‑year forecasts: FY2026 down to ~$25.53 (from ~$29.01) and FY2027 to ~$28.40 (from ~$31.89), plus multiple Q1/Q2 quarter cuts. The cuts reduce forward EPS expectations and could weigh on the stock if other analysts follow suit or if management doesn’t reaffirm stronger guidance.

About Elevance Health

Elevance Health, Inc (NYSE: ELV) is a large U.S.-based health benefits company that provides a broad range of health insurance products and related services. Headquartered in Indianapolis, the company rebranded from Anthem, Inc to Elevance Health in 2022 while continuing to operate consumer-facing health plans under established state and national brands. Gail Boudreaux serves as chief executive officer and president, leading the company’s strategic focus on integrated health care and benefit delivery.

Elevance’s core activities include offering medical and specialty health plans for individuals, employers and government programs, including Medicare and Medicaid managed-care products.