McKesson (NYSE:MCK) Upgraded at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of McKesson (NYSE:MCK) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Thursday.

A number of other research analysts have also commented on the stock. SVB Leerink began coverage on shares of McKesson in a research note on Monday, February 26th. They issued an outperform rating and a $600.00 price target on the stock. Leerink Partnrs reiterated an outperform rating on shares of McKesson in a research note on Monday, February 26th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of McKesson from $530.00 to $575.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Argus upped their price target on shares of McKesson from $510.00 to $570.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, UBS Group increased their target price on shares of McKesson from $575.00 to $620.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $533.50.

McKesson Stock Performance

Shares of MCK stock opened at $539.94 on Thursday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $527.50 and its 200-day moving average is $488.84. The stock has a market cap of $70.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.46, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.45. McKesson has a 52-week low of $352.34 and a 52-week high of $543.00.

McKesson (NYSE:MCK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 7th. The company reported $7.74 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.05 by $0.69. McKesson had a net margin of 0.99% and a negative return on equity of 262.63%. The business had revenue of $80.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $77.93 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $6.90 EPS. McKesson’s quarterly revenue was up 14.8% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that McKesson will post 27.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McKesson Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.62 per share. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.46%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 3rd. McKesson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 11.24%.

Insider Transactions at McKesson

In related news, CEO Brian S. Tyler sold 3,473 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $524.55, for a total value of $1,821,762.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 43,445 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $22,789,074.75. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Brian S. Tyler sold 3,473 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $524.55, for a total value of $1,821,762.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 43,445 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $22,789,074.75. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Leann B. Smith sold 186 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $496.00, for a total transaction of $92,256.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,511 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $749,456. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On McKesson

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. First Personal Financial Services raised its stake in shares of McKesson by 1.5% during the first quarter. First Personal Financial Services now owns 1,514 shares of the company’s stock valued at $813,000 after acquiring an additional 23 shares during the last quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of McKesson during the first quarter valued at $3,813,000. KG&L Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of McKesson by 16.7% during the first quarter. KG&L Capital Management LLC now owns 1,910 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,025,000 after buying an additional 273 shares during the period. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of McKesson by 282.8% during the first quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 6,052 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,249,000 after buying an additional 4,471 shares during the period. Finally, Petredis Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of McKesson by 0.8% during the first quarter. Petredis Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,943 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,654,000 after buying an additional 39 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 85.07% of the company’s stock.

McKesson Company 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.