Alliancebernstein L.P. Acquires 272,068 Shares of McKesson Co. (NYSE:MCK)

Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its position in shares of McKesson Co. (NYSE:MCK) by 46.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 855,332 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 272,068 shares during the quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P.’s holdings in McKesson were worth $487,462,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of MCK. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of McKesson during the fourth quarter worth about $1,200,361,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its position in shares of McKesson by 126.8% in the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 574,440 shares of the company’s stock valued at $283,903,000 after buying an additional 321,119 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in McKesson during the fourth quarter worth $178,397,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in McKesson in the 4th quarter valued at about $128,125,000. Finally, Boston Partners boosted its stake in shares of McKesson by 24.6% in the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,096,301 shares of the company’s stock valued at $625,501,000 after purchasing an additional 216,432 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.07% of the company’s stock.

McKesson Price Performance

NYSE MCK opened at $668.25 on Monday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $623.58 and a 200-day simple moving average of $579.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $83.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.52. McKesson Co. has a 52-week low of $464.42 and a 52-week high of $672.00.

McKesson (NYSE:MCK) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $8.03 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $8.60 by ($0.57). McKesson had a negative return on equity of 181.26% and a net margin of 0.82%. On average, analysts predict that McKesson Co. will post 32.77 EPS for the current year.

McKesson Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.71 per share. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. McKesson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 13.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MCK has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of McKesson from $713.00 to $677.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 10th. StockNews.com cut shares of McKesson from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on McKesson from $641.00 to $691.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on shares of McKesson from $650.00 to $675.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Bank of America cut their price objective on McKesson from $680.00 to $650.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $649.36.

Insider Transactions at McKesson

In other news, EVP Leann B. Smith sold 188 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $609.59, for a total value of $114,602.92. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 1,051 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $640,679.09. This represents a 15.17 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Brian S. Tyler sold 8,961 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $597.99, for a total value of $5,358,588.39. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 60,664 shares in the company, valued at approximately $36,276,465.36. This trade represents a 12.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 18,689 shares of company stock valued at $11,187,351. 0.11% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About McKesson

McKesson Corporation provides healthcare services in the United States and internationally. It operates through four segments: U.S. Pharmaceutical, Prescription Technology Solutions (RxTS), Medical-Surgical Solutions, and International. The U.S. Pharmaceutical segment distributes branded, generic, specialty, biosimilar and over-the-counter pharmaceutical drugs, and other healthcare-related products.