Elevance Health (NYSE:ELV) Price Target Raised to $492.00

Elevance Health (NYSE:ELV) had its price target raised by Wells Fargo & Company from $473.00 to $492.00 in a research report released on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the stock.

A number of other equities analysts also recently issued reports on ELV. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of Elevance Health from $393.00 to $406.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 22nd. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Elevance Health from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, July 12th. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of Elevance Health from $465.00 to $495.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 23rd. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Elevance Health from $469.00 to $472.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 22nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $451.00 target price on shares of Elevance Health in a report on Friday, October 23rd. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Elevance Health presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $456.48.

Elevance Health Stock Performance

Shares of ELV stock opened at $421.48 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.47, a quick ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $410.17 and a 200-day simple moving average of $372.09. The company has a market cap of $91.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 0.70. Elevance Health has a 12-month low of $274.84 and a 12-month high of $450.69.

Elevance Health (NYSE:ELV) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 21st. The company reported $6.99 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.71 by $2.28. The firm had revenue of $50.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $49.28 billion. Elevance Health had a return on equity of 14.97% and a net margin of 2.55%. Elevance Health’s quarterly revenue was up .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $6.03 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Elevance Health will post 29.13 EPS for the current year.

Elevance Health Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 18th. Investors of record on Friday, December 4th will be given a dividend of $1.72 per share. This represents a $6.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 4th. Elevance Health’s payout ratio is currently 29.34%.

Insider Activity

In other Elevance Health news, CFO Mark Kaye sold 10,584 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $440.13, for a total value of $4,658,335.92. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 19,919 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,766,949.47. This represents a 34.70% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.34% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Elevance Health

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in shares of Elevance Health in the second quarter worth $7,344,424,000. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of Elevance Health by 1.3% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,426,610 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,032,283,000 after purchasing an additional 137,914 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in Elevance Health by 12.0% during the 2nd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 9,213,513 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,563,142,000 after purchasing an additional 984,976 shares in the last quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Elevance Health by 1.4% during the 2nd quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 4,188,196 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,619,701,000 after buying an additional 55,905 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in shares of Elevance Health in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $1,246,349,000. 89.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Elevance Health

Elevance Health, Inc (NYSE: ELV) is a diversified health benefits company that provides health insurance and related services in the United States. Its offerings serve employers, individuals and families, as well as members of government-sponsored programs, including Medicare and Medicaid. The company provides medical, pharmacy, behavioral health and other benefits through a range of health plans and specialty products.

Elevance Health operates its health benefits businesses through a portfolio that includes Blue Cross and Blue Shield-affiliated plans and other insurance offerings.