Elevance Health (NYSE:ELV) Shares Gap Up - Time to Buy?

Elevance Health, Inc. (NYSE:ELV - Get Free Report) gapped up before the market opened on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $409.55, but opened at $425.13. Elevance Health shares last traded at $413.00, with a volume of 271,381 shares.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com lowered shares of Elevance Health from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday. Truist Financial dropped their price objective on shares of Elevance Health from $520.00 to $480.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Elevance Health from $501.00 to $512.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Elevance Health from $483.00 to $478.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $485.00 price objective on shares of Elevance Health in a report on Friday, January 24th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Elevance Health currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $517.03.

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Elevance Health Trading Down 2.3 %

The company has a quick ratio of 1.50, a current ratio of 1.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The business's fifty day moving average is $393.40 and its 200 day moving average is $431.42. The firm has a market capitalization of $93.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 0.86.

Elevance Health (NYSE:ELV - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The company reported $3.84 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.80 by $0.04. Elevance Health had a net margin of 3.38% and a return on equity of 18.28%. Equities analysts predict that Elevance Health, Inc. will post 33.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Elevance Health Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be issued a dividend of $1.71 per share. This represents a $6.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.66%. This is a positive change from Elevance Health's previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. Elevance Health's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Elevance Health news, CAO Ronald W. Penczek sold 443 shares of Elevance Health stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $415.13, for a total value of $183,902.59. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 1,847 shares in the company, valued at approximately $766,745.11. The trade was a 19.34 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Charles Morgan Kendrick, Jr. sold 3,504 shares of Elevance Health stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $396.30, for a total transaction of $1,388,635.20. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 10,116 shares in the company, valued at $4,008,970.80. The trade was a 25.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.35% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Accredited Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Elevance Health during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Raelipskie Partnership bought a new stake in shares of Elevance Health during the 3rd quarter worth about $26,000. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Elevance Health during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of Elevance Health during the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, WealthTrak Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Elevance Health during the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Institutional investors own 89.24% of the company's stock.

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.