Robert W. Baird Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Elevance Health (NYSE:ELV) Stock Price

Key Points

• Robert W. Baird cut its price target on Elevance to $317 from $340 and kept a "neutral" rating, implying only about a 1.99% upside from the prior close.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed: the consensus rating is "Hold" with a consensus price target of $383.57, while 12 analysts rate Buy, 10 Hold and 1 Sell, and several major firms (Barclays, Wells Fargo, Sanford Bernstein) recently trimmed targets.
• Elevance reported quarterly EPS of $3.33 (beating $3.10 estimates) but slightly missed revenue expectations, and the stock trades around $310.83 with a PE of 12.45 and a 52-week range of $273.71–$441.39.

Elevance Health (NYSE:ELV - Get Free Report) had its target price reduced by research analysts at Robert W. Baird from $340.00 to $317.00 in a report released on Wednesday,MarketScreener reports. The firm currently has a "neutral" rating on the stock. Robert W. Baird's price target points to a potential upside of 1.99% from the company's previous close.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Elevance Health from $404.00 to $393.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Leerink Partners raised their price objective on Elevance Health from $350.00 to $357.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Wolfe Research set a $425.00 target price on Elevance Health and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their target price on Elevance Health from $431.00 to $409.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Elevance Health from $424.00 to $391.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $383.57.

Elevance Health Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of Elevance Health stock opened at $310.83 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 1.54 and a current ratio of 1.54. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $309.65 and a 200-day moving average of $331.94. Elevance Health has a 52-week low of $273.71 and a 52-week high of $441.39. The stock has a market cap of $68.28 billion, a PE ratio of 12.45, a PEG ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.49.

Elevance Health (NYSE:ELV - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The company reported $3.33 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.10 by $0.23. The business had revenue of $49.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $49.52 billion. Elevance Health had a net margin of 2.84% and a return on equity of 15.59%. Elevance Health's revenue for the quarter was up 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.84 earnings per share. Elevance Health has set its FY 2026 guidance at 25.500- EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Elevance Health will post 33.96 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Elevance Health

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Murphy Middleton Hinkle & Parker Inc. acquired a new position in Elevance Health in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $5,941,000. Evergreen Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Elevance Health by 33.5% during the third quarter. Evergreen Wealth Management LLC now owns 17,283 shares of the company's stock worth $5,584,000 after purchasing an additional 4,336 shares during the period. Blume Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Elevance Health by 236.7% in the third quarter. Blume Capital Management Inc. now owns 6,145 shares of the company's stock worth $1,986,000 after purchasing an additional 4,320 shares during the last quarter. Canoe Financial LP grew its stake in shares of Elevance Health by 18.1% in the third quarter. Canoe Financial LP now owns 389,399 shares of the company's stock worth $125,823,000 after purchasing an additional 59,743 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in Elevance Health by 31.1% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 461,693 shares of the company's stock valued at $149,182,000 after purchasing an additional 109,462 shares during the period. 89.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Elevance Health Company Profile

Elevance Health, Inc NYSE: ELV is a large U.S.-based health benefits company that provides a broad range of health insurance products and related services. Headquartered in Indianapolis, the company rebranded from Anthem, Inc to Elevance Health in 2022 while continuing to operate consumer-facing health plans under established state and national brands. Gail Boudreaux serves as chief executive officer and president, leading the company's strategic focus on integrated health care and benefit delivery.

Elevance's core activities include offering medical and specialty health plans for individuals, employers and government programs, including Medicare and Medicaid managed-care products.

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.