Klein Pavlis & Peasley Financial Inc. Cuts Stake in McKesson Co. (NYSE:MCK)

Klein Pavlis & Peasley Financial Inc. decreased its position in McKesson Co. (NYSE:MCK) by 1.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,647 shares of the company’s stock after selling 17 shares during the period. Klein Pavlis & Peasley Financial Inc.’s holdings in McKesson were worth $939,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated raised its position in McKesson by 124.2% in the fourth quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated now owns 1,083 shares of the company’s stock worth $618,000 after acquiring an additional 600 shares in the last quarter. Adero Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of McKesson by 3.9% during the 4th quarter. Adero Partners LLC now owns 828 shares of the company’s stock worth $472,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares during the period. Bleakley Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of McKesson by 39.6% in the fourth quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 4,760 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,713,000 after purchasing an additional 1,351 shares during the period. Choreo LLC boosted its holdings in McKesson by 33.6% during the fourth quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 9,239 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,275,000 after buying an additional 2,323 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tectonic Advisors LLC grew its position in McKesson by 12.4% during the fourth quarter. Tectonic Advisors LLC now owns 1,493 shares of the company’s stock worth $851,000 after buying an additional 165 shares during the period. 85.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

McKesson Stock Performance

McKesson stock opened at $605.37 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $76.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.35, a PEG ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.52. McKesson Co. has a 1 year low of $464.42 and a 1 year high of $637.51. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $589.61 and a 200 day moving average price of $562.56.

McKesson (NYSE:MCK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $8.03 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $8.60 by ($0.57). McKesson had a negative return on equity of 207.50% and a net margin of 0.77%. Sell-side analysts predict that McKesson Co. will post 32.72 EPS for the current year.

McKesson Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.47%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. McKesson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 14.71%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Leann B. Smith sold 579 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $572.79, for a total value of $331,645.41. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 864 shares in the company, valued at approximately $494,890.56. This represents a 40.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.11% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently commented on MCK. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on McKesson from $560.00 to $680.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Robert W. Baird raised shares of McKesson from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $531.00 to $688.00 in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on McKesson from $612.00 to $642.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Bank of America dropped their price target on McKesson from $680.00 to $650.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Baird R W upgraded McKesson from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $646.14.

McKesson Profile

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.