Elevance Health (NYSE:ELV) Hits New 12-Month Low - Should You Sell?

Elevance Health, Inc. (NYSE:ELV - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week low on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $362.95 and last traded at $365.54, with a volume of 273201 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $366.26.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. TD Cowen dropped their target price on Elevance Health from $589.00 to $484.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 21st. Barclays cut their price objective on Elevance Health from $622.00 to $501.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Cantor Fitzgerald decreased their target price on shares of Elevance Health from $600.00 to $485.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Stephens reaffirmed an "underperform" rating on shares of Elevance Health in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Truist Financial reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $520.00 price objective (down previously from $620.00) on shares of Elevance Health in a research report on Friday, October 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $539.20.

Elevance Health Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.50, a current ratio of 1.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The company has a market capitalization of $85.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.36, a PEG ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 0.83. The company's fifty day moving average price is $414.93 and its 200 day moving average price is $491.14.

Elevance Health (NYSE:ELV - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 17th. The company reported $8.37 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $9.66 by ($1.29). Elevance Health had a return on equity of 19.56% and a net margin of 3.68%. The firm had revenue of $44.72 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $43.47 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $8.99 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Elevance Health, Inc. will post 32.96 EPS for the current year.

Elevance Health Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 5th will be paid a $1.63 dividend. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.78%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 5th. Elevance Health's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.77%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Charles Morgan Kendrick, Jr. sold 7,417 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, October 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $432.14, for a total value of $3,205,182.38. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 8,423 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,639,915.22. This represents a 46.82 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.35% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Elevance Health

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Elevance Health by 5.0% in the second quarter. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. now owns 5,391 shares of the company's stock worth $2,921,000 after acquiring an additional 258 shares during the period. &PARTNERS increased its holdings in Elevance Health by 217.9% in the second quarter. &PARTNERS now owns 3,780 shares of the company's stock worth $2,048,000 after purchasing an additional 2,591 shares in the last quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Elevance Health by 91.9% during the 2nd quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC now owns 1,629 shares of the company's stock worth $883,000 after buying an additional 780 shares in the last quarter. Everhart Financial Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Elevance Health by 15.3% during the 2nd quarter. Everhart Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,290 shares of the company's stock worth $699,000 after buying an additional 171 shares during the period. Finally, Van Lanschot Kempen Investment Management N.V. lifted its position in shares of Elevance Health by 36.3% during the 2nd quarter. Van Lanschot Kempen Investment Management N.V. now owns 10,748 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,824,000 after acquiring an additional 2,863 shares during the period. 89.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.