Elevance Health (NYSE:ELV) Shares Gap Down – Here’s What Happened

Elevance Health, Inc. (NYSE:ELV) gapped down before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $435.04, but opened at $390.00. Elevance Health shares last traded at $411.09, with a volume of 449,204 shares.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Guggenheim initiated coverage on shares of Elevance Health in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. They set a “buy” rating and a $518.00 target price for the company. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $485.00 target price on shares of Elevance Health in a report on Friday, January 24th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Elevance Health in a report on Friday, March 28th. Barclays upped 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, Truist Financial increased their price objective on Elevance Health from $480.00 to $510.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $514.41.

Elevance Health Stock Down 2.3 %

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 $415.54 and its 200-day moving average price is $412.33. The stock has a market cap of $96.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.59, a P/E/G ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 0.77.

Elevance Health (NYSE:ELV) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The company reported $3.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.80 by $0.04. Elevance Health had a net margin of 3.38% and a return on equity of 18.28%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Elevance Health, Inc. will post 33.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Elevance Health Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th were paid a $1.71 dividend. This represents a $6.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.61%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. This is a boost from Elevance Health’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. Elevance Health’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.71%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Charles Morgan Kendrick, Jr. sold 3,504 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $396.30, for a total transaction of $1,388,635.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 10,116 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,008,970.80. This represents a 25.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Ronald W. Penczek sold 443 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $415.13, for a total transaction of $183,902.59. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 1,847 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $766,745.11. The trade was a 19.34 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.35% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Elevance Health

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new position in Elevance Health in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $2,828,000. Te Ahumairangi Investment Management Ltd boosted its position in shares of Elevance Health by 39.6% during the third quarter. Te Ahumairangi Investment Management Ltd now owns 10,508 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,433,000 after buying an additional 2,983 shares during the period. Tudor Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Elevance Health during the third quarter worth about $235,000. Anchor Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Elevance Health by 22.9% in the 3rd quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 6,098 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,171,000 after purchasing an additional 1,135 shares during the last quarter. Finally, World Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Elevance Health in the 3rd quarter valued at about $8,855,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.24% of the company’s stock.

About Elevance Health

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.