McKesson Co. (NYSE:MCK) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

McKesson Co. (NYSE:MCK) has earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the sixteen ratings firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $646.14.

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of McKesson from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Bank of America cut their price objective on McKesson from $680.00 to $650.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. Citigroup dropped their target price on McKesson from $713.00 to $677.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Baird R W raised shares of McKesson from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of McKesson from $535.00 to $641.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th.

McKesson Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of MCK opened at $591.47 on Tuesday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $592.65 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $561.49. The company has a market capitalization of $75.08 billion, a PE ratio of 30.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 0.52. McKesson has a 52-week low of $464.42 and a 52-week high of $637.51.

McKesson (NYSE:MCK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The company reported $7.07 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.88 by $0.19. The firm had revenue of $93.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $89.33 billion. McKesson had a negative return on equity of 207.50% and a net margin of 0.77%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 21.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $6.23 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that McKesson will post 32.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

McKesson Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.71 per share. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.48%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 2nd. McKesson’s dividend payout ratio is currently 14.71%.

Insider Transactions at McKesson

In related news, EVP Leann B. Smith sold 579 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $572.79, for a total value of $331,645.41. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 864 shares of the company’s stock, 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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.11% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of McKesson

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of MCK. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its position in McKesson by 2.9% during the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 4,943,520 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,444,175,000 after buying an additional 138,685 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in McKesson by 17.3% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,968,239 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,467,557,000 after purchasing an additional 438,423 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of McKesson by 1.0% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,653,288 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,306,873,000 after buying an additional 26,299 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its stake in shares of McKesson by 2.9% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 1,297,620 shares of the company’s stock valued at $757,862,000 after buying an additional 36,583 shares during the period. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its position in McKesson by 55.8% during the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 1,189,377 shares of the company’s stock worth $588,048,000 after acquiring an additional 425,875 shares during the last quarter. 85.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.