Arjuna Capital Makes New Investment in McKesson Corporation (NYSE:MCK)

Key Points

• Arjuna Capital has invested $2.67 million in McKesson Corporation by acquiring 3,973 shares, reflecting growing interest from institutional investors in this healthcare services company.
• McKesson's quarterly earnings showed a report of $8.26 per share, slightly missing the consensus estimate, but the company experienced a revenue increase of 23.4% year-over-year.
• The company declared an increased quarterly dividend of $0.82 per share, up from $0.71, indicating a strong dividend growth with a payout ratio of 12.70%.

Arjuna Capital acquired a new stake in shares of McKesson Corporation (NYSE:MCK - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 3,973 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,674,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of MCK. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. raised its position in McKesson by 54.0% in the first quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,541 shares of the company's stock worth $3,056,000 after acquiring an additional 1,592 shares in the last quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC raised its position in McKesson by 16.6% in the first quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 778 shares of the company's stock worth $524,000 after acquiring an additional 111 shares in the last quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. raised its position in McKesson by 18.9% in the first quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 23,033 shares of the company's stock worth $15,501,000 after acquiring an additional 3,659 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its position in McKesson by 4.3% in the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 183,258 shares of the company's stock worth $123,332,000 after acquiring an additional 7,556 shares in the last quarter. Finally, LPL Financial LLC raised its position in McKesson by 12.8% in the first quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 155,946 shares of the company's stock worth $104,950,000 after acquiring an additional 17,750 shares in the last quarter. 85.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at McKesson

In other McKesson news, CFO Britt J. Vitalone sold 6,336 shares of McKesson stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $717.30, for a total transaction of $4,544,812.80. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 14,760 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,587,348. The trade was a 30.03% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Napoleon B. Rutledge, Jr. sold 543 shares of McKesson stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $726.51, for a total value of $394,494.93. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 1,972 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,432,677.72. This trade represents a 21.59% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 52,488 shares of company stock worth $37,242,862. Company insiders own 0.08% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of McKesson from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Sunday, July 13th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $766.00 price target on shares of McKesson and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 3rd. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of McKesson from $708.00 to $805.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and set a $810.00 price objective (up previously from $770.00) on shares of McKesson in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, Cowen restated a "buy" rating on shares of McKesson in a report on Thursday. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $718.73.

McKesson Trading Up 0.6%

NYSE:MCK traded up $3.89 on Friday, hitting $667.14. 1,298,642 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 740,071. McKesson Corporation has a 1 year low of $464.42 and a 1 year high of $737.89. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $714.12 and a 200-day moving average price of $679.09. The company has a market cap of $82.98 billion, a PE ratio of 26.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 0.50.

McKesson (NYSE:MCK - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $8.26 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $8.33 by ($0.07). McKesson had a net margin of 0.84% and a negative return on equity of 196.66%. The business had revenue of $97.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $95.93 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $7.88 EPS. The company's revenue was up 23.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that McKesson Corporation will post 32.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McKesson Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.82 per share. This is a boost from McKesson's previous quarterly dividend of $0.71. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 2nd. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. McKesson's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 10.99%.

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.