Epoch Investment Partners Inc. Buys 17,026 Shares of McKesson Corporation $MCK

Key Points

• Epoch Investment Partners increased its McKesson stake by 56.1% in the fourth quarter, buying 17,026 additional shares and bringing its total holdings to 47,366 shares valued at about $38.9 million.
• Analysts remain generally bullish on McKesson, with 14 Buy ratings and 3 Hold ratings; the consensus view is Moderate Buy and the average target price is $960.53.
• McKesson reported Q1 earnings above expectations at $11.69 per share and also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.82 per share, equivalent to an annualized yield of about 0.4%.

Epoch Investment Partners Inc. boosted its stake in shares of McKesson Corporation (NYSE:MCK - Free Report) by 56.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 47,366 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 17,026 shares during the period. Epoch Investment Partners Inc.'s holdings in McKesson were worth $38,854,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. GGM Financials LLC bought a new position in McKesson during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Swiss RE Ltd. bought a new position in McKesson during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. State of Wyoming bought a new position in McKesson during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new position in McKesson during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Board of the Pension Protection Fund bought a new position in McKesson during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Institutional investors own 85.07% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MCK has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on McKesson from $1,107.00 to $1,015.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on McKesson from $925.00 to $812.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. William Blair started coverage on McKesson in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. They set an "outperform" rating for the company. UBS Group lifted their target price on McKesson from $1,000.00 to $1,050.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised McKesson from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, May 2nd. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $960.53.

Insider Transactions at McKesson

In other news, EVP Michele Lau sold 3,550 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $761.09, for a total value of $2,701,869.50. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 3,247 shares in the company, valued at $2,471,259.23. This trade represents a 52.23% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Brian S. Tyler sold 4,929 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $763.00, for a total value of $3,760,827.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 22,845 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,430,735. This trade represents a 17.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 11,822 shares of company stock valued at $8,986,212. Corporate insiders own 0.08% of the company's stock.

McKesson Trading Down 0.0%

McKesson stock opened at $783.88 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $94.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.38, a PEG ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.31. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $798.10 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $846.19. McKesson Corporation has a 12 month low of $637.00 and a 12 month high of $999.00.

McKesson (NYSE:MCK - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $11.69 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $11.56 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $96.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $101.35 billion. McKesson had a negative return on equity of 345.35% and a net margin of 1.18%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $10.12 EPS. McKesson has set its FY 2027 guidance at 43.800-44.600 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that McKesson Corporation will post 44.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McKesson Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 1st will be paid a $0.82 dividend. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 1st. McKesson's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 8.53%.

McKesson Company Profile

McKesson Corporation NYSE: MCK is a global healthcare services and distribution company that supplies pharmaceuticals, medical-surgical products and health care technology solutions. Founded in 1833 and headquartered in Irving, Texas, McKesson operates across the drug distribution and healthcare services value chain, connecting manufacturers, pharmacies, hospitals and health systems to help manage the movement of medicines and clinical supplies.

The company's core activities include pharmaceutical wholesale distribution and logistics, specialty pharmacy services, and the provision of medical-surgical supplies to acute and non-acute care providers.

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