Elevance Health (NYSE:ELV) Stock Rating Upgraded by Argus

Argus upgraded shares of Elevance Health (NYSE:ELV) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report released on Monday morning, Marketbeat.com reports. Argus currently has $450.00 price target on the stock.

Several other research analysts have also commented on ELV. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Elevance Health from $483.00 to $478.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Stephens downgraded Elevance Health from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $520.00 to $440.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. StockNews.com cut Elevance Health from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $485.00 price objective on shares of Elevance Health in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Truist Financial reduced their target price on shares of Elevance Health from $520.00 to $480.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Two investment 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’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $519.81.

Elevance Health Stock Down 1.2 %

ELV opened at $430.87 on Monday. Elevance Health has a 1 year low of $362.21 and a 1 year high of $567.26. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $398.56 and a 200 day moving average price of $427.12. 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 company has a market cap of $97.96 billion, a PE ratio of 16.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 0.86.

Elevance Health (NYSE:ELV) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The company reported $3.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.80 by $0.04. Elevance Health had a net margin of 3.38% and a return on equity of 18.28%. Sell-side analysts expect that Elevance Health will post 33.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Elevance Health Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be issued a dividend of $1.71 per share. This is a positive change from Elevance Health’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. This represents a $6.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. Elevance Health’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.71%.

Insider Transactions at Elevance Health

In other Elevance Health news, EVP Charles Morgan Kendrick, Jr. sold 3,504 shares of the 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 10,116 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,008,970.80. This trade represents a 25.73 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO Ronald W. Penczek sold 443 shares of Elevance Health stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $415.13, for a total value of $183,902.59. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 1,847 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $766,745.11. The trade was a 19.34 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Elevance Health

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ELV. DSG Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Elevance Health in the 4th quarter worth about $1,477,000. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC raised its stake in Elevance Health by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC now owns 33,036 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,187,000 after acquiring an additional 787 shares during the period. PKO Investment Management Joint Stock Co bought a new position in Elevance Health in the fourth quarter worth about $1,771,000. Centaurus Financial Inc. boosted its stake in Elevance Health by 52.3% in the fourth quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. now owns 2,249 shares of the company’s stock valued at $830,000 after acquiring an additional 772 shares during the period. Finally, Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH grew its holdings in shares of Elevance Health by 9.0% during the fourth quarter. Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH now owns 16,517 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,091,000 after purchasing an additional 1,367 shares during the last quarter. 89.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Elevance Health Company 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.