Elevance Health (NYSE:ELV) Shares Gap Up - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• Elevance Health shares jumped 3.8%, opening at $407.38 versus a prior close of $396.90 and later trading around $413.13.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with 15 Buy ratings and 8 Holds, producing a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $440.90.
• The company exceeded quarterly expectations with adjusted EPS of $7.45 versus $6.21 expected and revenue of $49.83 billion; it also declared a quarterly dividend of $1.72 per share, yielding about 1.7% annually.

Shares of Elevance Health, Inc. (NYSE:ELV - Get Free Report) gapped up prior to trading on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $396.90, but opened at $407.38. Elevance Health shares last traded at $413.1280, with a volume of 142,694 shares trading hands.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Elevance Health from $400.00 to $460.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Elevance Health in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. Cantor Fitzgerald upped their price target on shares of Elevance Health from $400.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $395.00 price objective on shares of Elevance Health in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their price objective on Elevance Health from $450.00 to $475.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $440.90.

Elevance Health Stock Up 3.8%

The company has a market cap of $89.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.32, a P/E/G ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 0.69. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $397.05 and a two-hundred day moving average of $365.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 1.52 and a current ratio of 1.52.

Elevance Health (NYSE:ELV - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 15th. The company reported $7.45 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $6.21 by $1.24. The business had revenue of $49.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $48.88 billion. Elevance Health had a net margin of 2.47% and a return on equity of 14.64%. The business's quarterly revenue was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $8.84 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Elevance Health, Inc. will post 27.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Elevance Health Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 25th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 10th will be given a dividend of $1.72 per share. This represents a $6.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 10th. Elevance Health's dividend payout ratio is presently 30.58%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Kilter Group LLC bought a new position in Elevance Health during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Elevance Health in the 4th quarter worth $31,000. J.Safra Asset Management Corp bought a new position in Elevance Health during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. WealthCollab LLC boosted its holdings in Elevance Health by 42.2% in the first quarter. WealthCollab LLC now owns 91 shares of the company's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Elevation Wealth Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Elevance Health by 600.0% in the second quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 105 shares of the company's stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.24% of the company's stock.

About Elevance Health

Elevance Health, Inc is a health benefits and services company that provides health insurance, care management and related healthcare solutions in the United States. The company serves individuals, employers and government-sponsored programs through a portfolio that includes commercial health plans, Medicare Advantage and other Medicare products, Medicaid plans, and specialty coverage.

Elevance Health operates a portfolio of Blue Cross Blue Shield-affiliated health plans and offers products such as medical, pharmacy, dental and vision benefits.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.