McKesson Co. (NYSE:MCK) Given Average Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

McKesson Co. (NYSE:MCK - Get Free Report) has been assigned an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the twelve brokerages that are covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and ten have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $533.50.

Several brokerages recently weighed in on MCK. Argus raised their target price on McKesson from $510.00 to $570.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. SVB Leerink began coverage on McKesson in a research note on Monday, February 26th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $600.00 target price for the company. Citigroup raised their target price on McKesson from $530.00 to $575.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. StockNews.com cut McKesson from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 4th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on McKesson from $522.00 to $548.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, April 15th.

McKesson Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MCK traded up $6.02 on Friday, hitting $524.83. The company's stock had a trading volume of 645,525 shares, compared to its average volume of 454,051. McKesson has a 12 month low of $352.34 and a 12 month high of $543.00. The company has a market capitalization of $68.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.45. The stock's 50-day moving average is $524.91 and its two-hundred day moving average is $486.96.

McKesson (NYSE:MCK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 7th. The company reported $7.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $7.05 by $0.69. McKesson had a negative return on equity of 262.63% and a net margin of 0.99%. The company had revenue of $80.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $77.93 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $6.90 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 14.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that McKesson will post 27.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

McKesson Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 1st were issued a dividend of $0.62 per share. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.47%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 29th. McKesson's payout ratio is presently 11.24%.

Insider Transactions at McKesson

In other news, EVP Leann B. Smith sold 186 shares of McKesson stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $496.00, for a total transaction of $92,256.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 1,511 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $749,456. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Brian S. Tyler sold 3,473 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $524.55, for a total transaction of $1,821,762.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 43,445 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,789,074.75. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Leann B. Smith sold 186 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $496.00, for a total value of $92,256.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 1,511 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $749,456. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.21% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On McKesson

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Covestor Ltd raised its position in McKesson by 72.3% in the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 81 shares of the company's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Garner Asset Management Corp bought a new position in McKesson in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new position in McKesson in the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Legacy Financial Group LLC bought a new position in McKesson in the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. Finally, Sachetta LLC bought a new position in McKesson in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Institutional investors own 85.07% of the company's stock.

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.