The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Has $691.19 Million Holdings in Elevance Health, Inc. $ELV

Key Points

• The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company has reduced its stake in Elevance Health, Inc. by 20.3%, selling 405,330 shares and retaining 1,589,089 shares that now constitute about 0.7% of its portfolio, valued at $691.19 million.
• Multiple institutional investors, including CWA Asset Management and GAMMA Investing LLC, have recently increased their positions in Elevance Health, indicating growing interest from hedge funds.
• Analysts have downgraded Elevance Health’s ratings and target prices significantly, with current estimates setting a consensus price target of $413.81, compared to previous targets exceeding $500.

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lowered its stake in Elevance Health, Inc. (NYSE:ELV - Free Report) by 20.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,589,089 shares of the company's stock after selling 405,330 shares during the period. Elevance Health makes up 0.7% of The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company's holdings, making the stock its 25th biggest holding. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned 0.70% of Elevance Health worth $691,190,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Clough Capital Partners L P bought a new position in shares of Elevance Health in the first quarter worth $8,312,000. Magnetar Financial LLC increased its position in shares of Elevance Health by 126.0% in the first quarter. Magnetar Financial LLC now owns 4,432 shares of the company's stock worth $1,928,000 after purchasing an additional 2,471 shares during the period. WPG Advisers LLC bought a new position in shares of Elevance Health in the first quarter worth $29,000. Trexquant Investment LP bought a new position in Elevance Health in the first quarter valued at about $764,000. Finally, Okabena Investment Services Inc. bought a new position in Elevance Health in the first quarter valued at about $1,357,000. Institutional investors own 89.24% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Elevance Health

In related news, Director Susan D. Devore bought 1,200 shares of Elevance Health stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 19th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $312.15 per share, for a total transaction of $374,580.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 3,502 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,093,149.30. The trade was a 52.13% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Gail Boudreaux purchased 8,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, July 18th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $286.94 per share, for a total transaction of $2,438,990.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer owned 151,020 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $43,333,678.80. This trade represents a 5.96% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company's stock.

Elevance Health Trading Down 0.8%

ELV stock traded down $2.44 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $319.90. The company had a trading volume of 672,519 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,965,256. The business has a 50-day moving average of $315.76 and a 200-day moving average of $374.86. Elevance Health, Inc. has a one year low of $273.71 and a one year high of $562.11. The stock has a market cap of $72.03 billion, a PE ratio of 13.62, a PEG ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a current ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64.

Elevance Health (NYSE:ELV - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The company reported $8.84 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $9.30 by ($0.46). Elevance Health had a net margin of 2.83% and a return on equity of 17.59%. The company had revenue of $49.42 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $48.26 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $10.12 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 14.3% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Elevance Health, Inc. will post 33.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Elevance Health Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 25th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 10th will be issued a $1.71 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 10th. This represents a $6.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. Elevance Health's dividend payout ratio is presently 29.11%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have issued reports on ELV shares. Leerink Partnrs cut Elevance Health from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on Elevance Health from $492.00 to $297.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Elevance Health from $400.00 to $330.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 15th. Barclays decreased their target price on Elevance Health from $434.00 to $358.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Finally, Truist Financial decreased their target price on Elevance Health from $500.00 to $440.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $413.81.

Elevance Health Profile

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.