Ninety One UK Ltd Trims Stock Holdings in McKesson Co. (NYSE:MCK)

Ninety One UK Ltd lessened its position in shares of McKesson Co. (NYSE:MCK) by 0.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 124,472 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,068 shares during the quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd owned 0.10% of McKesson worth $70,938,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC boosted its position in McKesson by 742.9% in the third quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 59 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in McKesson during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of McKesson in the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. Synergy Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of McKesson in the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new position in shares of McKesson during the fourth quarter worth $33,000. 85.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

McKesson Stock Up 0.6 %

MCK opened at $603.40 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $76.59 billion, a PE ratio of 31.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.52. McKesson Co. has a twelve month low of $464.42 and a twelve month high of $637.51. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $590.46 and a 200 day moving average price of $562.09.

McKesson (NYSE:MCK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The company reported $7.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.88 by $0.19. The company had revenue of $93.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $89.33 billion. McKesson had a net margin of 0.77% and a negative return on equity of 207.50%. McKesson’s revenue was up 21.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $6.23 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that McKesson Co. will post 32.72 earnings per share for the current year.

McKesson Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.71 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.47%. McKesson’s dividend payout ratio is currently 14.71%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Leann B. Smith sold 579 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.11% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have commented on MCK. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of McKesson from $535.00 to $641.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Bank of America lowered their target price on McKesson from $680.00 to $650.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Citigroup reduced their price target on McKesson from $713.00 to $677.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Robert W. Baird upgraded McKesson from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $531.00 to $688.00 in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Baird R W raised shares of McKesson from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $646.14.

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.