Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC Purchases 35,787 Shares of Elevance Health, Inc. $ELV

Key Points

• Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its position in Elevance Health by 129.8% in Q2, now holding shares worth $24.64 million.
• Analysts have mixed opinions on Elevance Health, with target price adjustments ranging from $297 to $492 and a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy".
• Corporate insiders, including Director Susan D. Devore and CEO Gail Boudreaux, have made significant stock purchases, reflecting confidence in the company's future performance.

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Elevance Health, Inc. (NYSE:ELV - Free Report) by 129.8% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 63,353 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 35,787 shares during the quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC's holdings in Elevance Health were worth $24,642,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in ELV. Private Wealth Management Group LLC lifted its position in Elevance Health by 152.0% in the 1st quarter. Private Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 63 shares of the company's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. WPG Advisers LLC bought a new stake in Elevance Health in the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. Riverview Trust Co lifted its position in Elevance Health by 1,340.0% in the 1st quarter. Riverview Trust Co now owns 72 shares of the company's stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. North Capital Inc. bought a new stake in Elevance Health in the 1st quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Saudi Central Bank bought a new stake in Elevance Health in the 1st quarter valued at $40,000. 89.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Elevance Health

In related news, Director Susan D. Devore acquired 1,200 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 19th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $312.15 per share, with a total value of $374,580.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 3,502 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,093,149.30. This trade represents a 52.13% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Gail Boudreaux purchased 8,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 18th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $286.94 per share, with a total value of $2,438,990.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 151,020 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $43,333,678.80. The trade was a 5.96% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.29% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on ELV shares. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Elevance Health from $435.00 to $425.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, September 5th. Leerink Partners reiterated a "market perform" rating and issued a $310.00 price target (down from $510.00) on shares of Elevance Health in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $478.00 price target on shares of Elevance Health in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Elevance Health from $428.00 to $316.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Finally, Leerink Partnrs lowered shares of Elevance Health from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Elevance Health presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $411.06.

Elevance Health Stock Performance

ELV traded up $5.94 on Tuesday, reaching $323.83. The company had a trading volume of 907,440 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,978,629. Elevance Health, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $273.71 and a fifty-two week high of $534.74. The stock has a market cap of $72.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.78, a P/E/G ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 0.59. The company's fifty day moving average is $302.61 and its 200 day moving average is $366.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a current ratio of 1.44.

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

Elevance Health Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 25th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 10th will be paid a $1.71 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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%.

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.