Smith Group Asset Management LLC Trims Position in McKesson Co. (NYSE:MCK)

Smith Group Asset Management LLC reduced its holdings in McKesson Co. (NYSE:MCK) by 0.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 47,321 shares of the company’s stock after selling 411 shares during the period. McKesson comprises 2.0% of Smith Group Asset Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 20th biggest position. Smith Group Asset Management LLC’s holdings in McKesson were worth $26,969,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in MCK. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its position in McKesson by 2.9% during the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 4,943,520 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,444,175,000 after buying an additional 138,685 shares during the period. FMR LLC boosted its stake in shares of McKesson by 17.3% during the 3rd 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 in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of McKesson by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,653,288 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,306,873,000 after acquiring an additional 26,299 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its stake in shares of McKesson by 55.8% in the 3rd 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB raised its holdings in McKesson by 20.0% in 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 during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.07% of the company’s stock.

McKesson Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of MCK opened at $602.94 on Wednesday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $592.16 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $561.52. The company has a market capitalization of $76.54 billion, a PE ratio of 31.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 0.52. McKesson Co. has a 52-week low of $464.42 and a 52-week high of $637.51.

McKesson (NYSE:MCK) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The company reported $7.07 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.88 by $0.19. The company had revenue of $93.65 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $89.33 billion. McKesson had a net margin of 0.77% and a negative return on equity of 207.50%. McKesson’s quarterly revenue was up 21.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $6.23 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that McKesson Co. will post 32.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

McKesson Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd were given a $0.71 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $2.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.47%. McKesson’s payout ratio is 14.71%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Leann B. Smith sold 579 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $572.79, for a total value of $331,645.41. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 864 shares in the company, valued at approximately $494,890.56. This represents a 40.12 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.11% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on MCK shares. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of McKesson from $535.00 to $641.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of McKesson from $560.00 to $680.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Leerink Partners decreased their price target on shares of McKesson from $665.00 to $630.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Morgan Stanley boosted 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. Finally, Baird R W upgraded McKesson from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $646.14.

McKesson Company Profile

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.