McKesson Co. (NYSE:MCK) Shares Sold by Van ECK Associates Corp

Van ECK Associates Corp decreased its position in McKesson Co. (NYSE:MCK) by 18.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 66,439 shares of the company’s stock after selling 15,518 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp owned about 0.05% of McKesson worth $37,864,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its position in shares of McKesson by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 4,943,520 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,444,175,000 after buying an additional 138,685 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its position in McKesson by 17.3% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,968,239 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,467,557,000 after acquiring an additional 438,423 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of McKesson by 1.0% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,653,288 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,306,873,000 after purchasing an additional 26,299 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its position in shares of McKesson by 55.8% in the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 1,189,377 shares of the company’s stock valued at $588,048,000 after purchasing an additional 425,875 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB increased its stake in shares of McKesson by 20.0% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 975,935 shares of the company’s stock worth $558,606,000 after purchasing an additional 162,688 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.07% of the company’s stock.

McKesson Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of MCK opened at $602.73 on Friday. McKesson Co. has a fifty-two week low of $464.42 and a fifty-two week high of $637.51. The company’s fifty day moving average is $587.56 and its two-hundred day moving average is $562.90. The firm has a market cap of $76.51 billion, a PE ratio of 27.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 0.52.

McKesson (NYSE:MCK) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $8.03 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $8.60 by ($0.57). McKesson had a net margin of 0.82% and a negative return on equity of 181.26%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that McKesson Co. will post 32.69 earnings per share for the current year.

McKesson Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.71 per share. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.47%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. McKesson’s payout ratio is currently 13.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other McKesson news, EVP Leann B. Smith sold 188 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $609.59, for a total transaction of $114,602.92. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 1,051 shares in the company, valued at $640,679.09. The trade was a 15.17 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In the last quarter, insiders sold 1,346 shares of company stock valued at $795,275. 0.11% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MCK has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Bank of America reduced their target price on McKesson from $680.00 to $650.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on McKesson from $535.00 to $641.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Mizuho initiated coverage on McKesson in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $630.00 price objective for the company. Baird R W upgraded shares of McKesson from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of McKesson from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $531.00 to $688.00 in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $645.79.

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.