Ascent Wealth Partners LLC Cuts Holdings in Elevance Health, Inc. (NYSE:ELV)

Ascent Wealth Partners LLC reduced its position in Elevance Health, Inc. (NYSE:ELV) by 16.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 858 shares of the company’s stock after selling 163 shares during the period. Ascent Wealth Partners LLC’s holdings in Elevance Health were worth $317,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Raelipskie Partnership purchased a new position in shares of Elevance Health in the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. Eastern Bank purchased a new position in shares of Elevance Health in the 3rd quarter worth $31,000. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new position in shares of Elevance Health in the 4th quarter worth $34,000. Dunhill Financial LLC boosted its stake in shares of Elevance Health by 57.8% in the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 71 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 26 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Elevance Health in the 3rd quarter worth $44,000. 89.24% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on ELV shares. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $485.00 target price on shares of Elevance Health in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Truist Financial lowered their target price on Elevance Health from $520.00 to $480.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Stephens downgraded Elevance Health from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $520.00 to $440.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Barclays lifted their target price on Elevance Health from $501.00 to $512.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Elevance Health from $483.00 to $478.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $517.03.

Elevance Health Trading Down 1.4 %

Shares of ELV stock opened at $385.04 on Friday. Elevance Health, Inc. has a 12-month low of $362.21 and a 12-month high of $567.26. The company has a current ratio of 1.45, a quick ratio of 1.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $385.25 and its 200-day moving average price is $443.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $89.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 0.83.

Elevance Health (NYSE:ELV) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The company reported $3.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.80 by $0.04. Elevance Health had a return on equity of 18.28% and a net margin of 3.38%. Equities research analysts predict that Elevance Health, Inc. will post 33.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Elevance Health Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be issued a $1.71 dividend. This represents a $6.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.78%. This is a boost from Elevance Health’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. Elevance Health’s payout ratio is 25.46%.

Elevance Health Company Profile

Elevance Health, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a health benefits company in the United States. The company operates through four segments: Health Benefits, CarelonRx, Carelon Services, and Corporate & Other. It offers a variety of health plans and services to program members; health products; an array of fee-based administrative managed care services; and specialty and other insurance products and services, such as stop loss, dental, vision, life, disability, and supplemental health insurance benefits.