Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. Acquires 11,066 Shares of Elevance Health, Inc. (NYSE:ELV)

Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. raised its holdings in shares of Elevance Health, Inc. (NYSE:ELV) by 69.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 27,043 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 11,066 shares during the quarter. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P.’s holdings in Elevance Health were worth $9,976,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Raelipskie Partnership purchased a new position in shares of Elevance Health in the third quarter valued at $26,000. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Elevance Health during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of Elevance Health during the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in shares of Elevance Health in the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Dunhill Financial LLC boosted its position in shares of Elevance Health by 57.8% in the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 71 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 26 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.24% of the company’s stock.

Elevance Health Stock Performance

Elevance Health stock opened at $434.44 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $399.60 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $427.17. The company has a quick ratio of 1.50, a current ratio of 1.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. Elevance Health, Inc. has a twelve month low of $362.21 and a twelve month high of $567.26. The company has a market capitalization of $98.77 billion, a PE ratio of 16.96, a P/E/G ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 0.86.

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

Elevance Health Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be issued a $1.71 dividend. This is a boost from Elevance Health’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $6.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.57%. Elevance Health’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.71%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Truist Financial decreased their target price on shares of Elevance Health from $520.00 to $480.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. StockNews.com raised shares of Elevance Health from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $485.00 price objective on shares of Elevance Health in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Argus upgraded Elevance Health from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $450.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Monday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Elevance Health from $483.00 to $478.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. 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 stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $519.81.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, 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 sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 1,847 shares in the company, valued at approximately $766,745.11. This trade represents a 19.34 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Charles Morgan Kendrick, Jr. sold 3,504 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $396.30, for a total value of $1,388,635.20. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 10,116 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,008,970.80. This represents a 25.73 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.35% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.