McKesson (NYSE:MCK) Reaches New 52-Week High - Here's Why

McKesson Co. (NYSE:MCK - Get Free Report) shares reached a new 52-week high on Monday . The stock traded as high as $654.25 and last traded at $660.02, with a volume of 184888 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $644.22.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on MCK shares. Citigroup decreased their target price on McKesson from $713.00 to $677.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Evercore ISI raised their target price on shares of McKesson from $650.00 to $675.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. StockNews.com lowered shares of McKesson from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on McKesson from $535.00 to $641.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on McKesson from $612.00 to $642.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $645.79.

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McKesson Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of $80.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.35, a P/E/G ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.52. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $605.54 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $569.47.

McKesson (NYSE:MCK - Get Free Report) last posted 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, analysts predict that McKesson Co. will post 32.77 earnings per share for the current year.

McKesson Dividend Announcement

The business 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 $0.71 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.44%. McKesson's payout ratio is presently 13.00%.

Insider Activity at McKesson

In other news, EVP Leann B. Smith sold 579 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $572.79, for a total transaction of $331,645.41. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 864 shares in the company, valued at approximately $494,890.56. This represents a 40.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Brian S. Tyler sold 8,961 shares of McKesson stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $600.66, for a total value of $5,382,514.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 69,625 shares of the company's stock, valued at $41,820,952.50. This represents a 11.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 18,689 shares of company stock valued at $11,187,351 in the last 90 days. 0.11% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On McKesson

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Capital A Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of McKesson in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of McKesson in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of McKesson during the third quarter worth $29,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new position in shares of McKesson during the third quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Synergy Asset Management LLC bought a new position in McKesson in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.07% of the company's stock.

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.