McKesson (NYSE:MCK) Stock Rating Raised to “Buy” at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of McKesson (NYSE:MCK) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report issued on Saturday,Wall Street Zen reports.

MCK has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Robert W. Baird set a $1,015.00 price target on McKesson in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Mizuho upped their price target on McKesson from $885.00 to $905.00 in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Leerink Partners increased their price objective on McKesson from $1,030.00 to $1,070.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 7th. Barclays increased their price objective on McKesson from $925.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on McKesson from $812.00 to $933.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $990.35.

McKesson Stock Up 0.7%

Shares of McKesson stock opened at $1,005.39 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $117.22 billion, a PE ratio of 26.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.30. McKesson has a 12-month low of $723.68 and a 12-month high of $1,014.99. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $897.66 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $837.50.

McKesson (NYSE:MCK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $9.93 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $9.56 by $0.37. The firm had revenue of $105.38 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $103.88 billion. McKesson had a net margin of 1.12% and a negative return on equity of 253.21%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $8.26 earnings per share. McKesson has set its FY 2027 guidance at 44.200-45.000 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that McKesson will post 44.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

McKesson Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 1st were issued a $0.94 dividend. This is a boost from McKesson’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.82. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 1st. This represents a $3.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. McKesson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 10.06%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Bradley E. Lerman sold 301 shares of McKesson stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $892.33, for a total transaction of $268,591.33. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Napoleon B. Rutledge, Jr. sold 111 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $891.45, for a total transaction of $98,950.95. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 521 shares in the company, valued at $464,445.45. This represents a 17.56% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On McKesson

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in shares of McKesson during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $8,156,743,000. Bank of America Corp DE raised its position in shares of McKesson by 2.4% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,538,726 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,331,552,000 after acquiring an additional 35,916 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB lifted its stake in shares of McKesson by 13.5% in the 1st quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 1,005,610 shares of the company’s stock valued at $870,215,000 after purchasing an additional 119,327 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its stake in shares of McKesson by 3.3% in the 2nd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 922,573 shares of the company’s stock valued at $697,096,000 after purchasing an additional 29,747 shares during the period. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new position in shares of McKesson in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $656,566,000. 85.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About McKesson

McKesson Corporation is a healthcare services and information technology company that distributes pharmaceuticals and medical products to pharmacies, hospitals, health systems, physicians and other healthcare providers. The company also provides technology, data and business solutions designed to support prescription management, pharmacy operations and patient care.

McKesson’s principal activities include pharmaceutical distribution, medical-surgical supply distribution, specialty pharmaceutical services and oncology care support.