Elevance Health, Inc. (NYSE:ELV) Short Interest Update

Elevance Health, Inc. (NYSE:ELV - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in the month of April. As of April 30th, there was short interest totalling 2,090,000 shares, an increase of 7.7% from the April 15th total of 1,940,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 963,200 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.2 days. Approximately 0.9% of the company's stock are sold short.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Felicia F. Norwood sold 14,111 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $533.74, for a total transaction of $7,531,605.14. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 31,460 shares of the company's stock, valued at $16,791,460.40. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.29% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Elevance Health during the 4th quarter worth $1,347,434,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA purchased a new stake in Elevance Health in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $467,141,000. Canoe Financial LP increased its position in Elevance Health by 158.1% during the fourth quarter. Canoe Financial LP now owns 844,122 shares of the company's stock worth $398,054,000 after purchasing an additional 517,116 shares during the last quarter. Morningstar Investment Services LLC purchased a new position in Elevance Health during the fourth quarter worth approximately $239,244,000. Finally, Focused Investors Fund L P acquired a new position in shares of Elevance Health in the 1st quarter valued at $249,884,000. 89.24% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Elevance Health Price Performance

Shares of ELV stock traded up $3.90 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $543.89. The stock had a trading volume of 943,499 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,026,549. The company has a market cap of $126.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a current ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. Elevance Health has a 12-month low of $412.00 and a 12-month high of $546.29. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $518.83 and a 200 day simple moving average of $493.67.

Elevance Health (NYSE:ELV - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 18th. The company reported $10.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $10.54 by $0.10. Elevance Health had a net margin of 3.64% and a return on equity of 20.62%. The company had revenue of $42.27 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $42.49 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $9.46 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Elevance Health will post 37.26 earnings per share for the current year.

Elevance Health Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 25th. Investors of record on Monday, June 10th will be paid a dividend of $1.63 per share. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.20%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 10th. Elevance Health's payout ratio is currently 24.64%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on ELV shares. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Elevance Health from $557.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Elevance Health from $574.00 to $575.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, April 19th. Mizuho boosted their target price on Elevance Health from $575.00 to $585.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. StockNews.com downgraded Elevance Health from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Elevance Health from $585.00 to $605.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $587.42.

Elevance Health Company 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.