Elevance Health (NYSE:ELV) Sets New 52-Week High Following Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Elevance Health, Inc. (NYSE:ELV) shares reached a new 52-week high on Thursday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The company traded as high as $533.56 and last traded at $530.40, with a volume of 361720 shares. The stock had previously closed at $508.97.

The company reported $10.64 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $10.54 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $42.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $42.49 billion. Elevance Health had a return on equity of 20.47% and a net margin of 3.49%. The business’s revenue was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $9.46 earnings per share.

Elevance Health Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 25th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 10th will be paid a $1.63 dividend. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.23%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 10th. Elevance Health’s dividend payout ratio is currently 25.90%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com lowered Elevance Health from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Elevance Health from $574.00 to $575.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday. Barclays upped their price objective on Elevance Health from $584.00 to $621.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on Elevance Health from $602.00 to $604.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $600.00 price objective (up previously from $580.00) on shares of Elevance Health in a report on Friday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $583.77.

Insider Activity

In other Elevance Health news, Director Ramiro G. Peru sold 753 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total transaction of $376,500.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 9,109 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,554,500. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Elevance Health

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Cerity Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Elevance Health by 21.3% in the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 52,300 shares of the company’s stock valued at $24,663,000 after purchasing an additional 9,199 shares during the last quarter. Chicago Capital LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Elevance Health by 244.2% during the 4th quarter. Chicago Capital LLC now owns 7,028 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,314,000 after acquiring an additional 4,986 shares in the last quarter. Lecap Asset Management Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Elevance Health during the 4th quarter valued at $2,235,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Elevance Health by 45,888.1% during the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 255,694 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,205,750,000 after acquiring an additional 255,138 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Avitas Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Elevance Health during the 4th quarter valued at $2,137,000. Institutional investors own 89.24% of the company’s stock.

Elevance Health Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a current ratio of 1.44. The company has a market cap of $123.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.12, a P/E/G ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a fifty day moving average of $509.14 and a two-hundred day moving average of $483.22.

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.