McKesson (NYSE:MCK) Rating Lowered to “Buy” at StockNews.com

McKesson (NYSE:MCK) was downgraded by research analysts at StockNews.com from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Friday.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of McKesson from $535.00 to $641.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Baird R W raised shares of McKesson from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of McKesson from $713.00 to $677.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. Mizuho started coverage on shares of McKesson in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $630.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their target price on McKesson from $650.00 to $675.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $645.79.

McKesson Price Performance

Shares of McKesson stock opened at $593.82 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $587.26 and a 200 day moving average price of $563.09. The stock has a market cap of $74.42 billion, a PE ratio of 27.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 0.52. McKesson has a 1 year low of $464.42 and a 1 year high of $637.51.

McKesson (NYSE:MCK) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $8.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $8.60 by ($0.57). McKesson had a negative return on equity of 181.26% and a net margin of 0.82%. As a group, equities analysts expect that McKesson will post 32.69 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other McKesson news, EVP Leann B. Smith sold 579 shares of the 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 864 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $494,890.56. This trade represents a 40.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In the last three months, insiders sold 1,346 shares of company stock valued at $795,275. Company insiders own 0.11% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Cibc World Market Inc. boosted its stake in McKesson by 6.3% during the 4th quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 20,252 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,542,000 after acquiring an additional 1,207 shares during the last quarter. Commerce Bank grew its stake in McKesson by 2.0% in the third quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 156,781 shares of the company’s stock worth $77,516,000 after purchasing an additional 3,020 shares in the last quarter. West Oak Capital LLC increased its holdings in McKesson by 867.7% in the fourth quarter. West Oak Capital LLC now owns 3,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,710,000 after buying an additional 2,690 shares during the last quarter. Brentview Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in McKesson during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $3,018,000. Finally, Ingalls & Snyder LLC grew its position in shares of McKesson by 8.2% in the 4th quarter. Ingalls & Snyder LLC now owns 13,824 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,878,000 after acquiring an additional 1,047 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other 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.