First Trust Advisors LP Has $28.92 Million Stock Holdings in McKesson Co. (NYSE:MCK)

First Trust Advisors LP boosted its position in McKesson Co. (NYSE:MCK) by 47.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 50,743 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 16,392 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP’s holdings in McKesson were worth $28,919,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of MCK. Millstone Evans Group LLC bought a new position in shares of McKesson during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Synergy Asset Management LLC bought a new position in McKesson during the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new position in shares of McKesson in the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Atala Financial Inc bought a new position in shares of McKesson in the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, Graney & King LLC acquired a new stake in shares of McKesson during the 4th quarter worth about $38,000. Institutional investors own 85.07% of the company’s stock.

McKesson Stock Performance

Shares of MCK stock opened at $694.62 on Friday. McKesson Co. has a fifty-two week low of $464.42 and a fifty-two week high of $728.32. The company has a market cap of $87.05 billion, a PE ratio of 31.80, a P/E/G ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.49. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $661.28 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $606.43.

McKesson (NYSE:MCK) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $8.03 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $8.60 by ($0.57). McKesson had a negative return on equity of 181.26% and a net margin of 0.82%. On average, equities analysts predict that McKesson Co. will post 32.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McKesson Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a $0.71 dividend. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.41%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. McKesson’s payout ratio is 13.00%.

Insider Activity at McKesson

In other news, CEO Brian S. Tyler sold 8,961 shares of McKesson stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $600.66, for a total transaction of $5,382,514.26. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 69,625 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $41,820,952.50. This trade represents a 11.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Leann B. Smith sold 188 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $609.59, for a total value of $114,602.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,051 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $640,679.09. This represents a 15.17 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 18,110 shares of company stock valued at $10,855,706 in the last 90 days. 0.11% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MCK has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of McKesson from $713.00 to $677.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. StockNews.com cut McKesson from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Mizuho upped their price objective on McKesson from $630.00 to $690.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on McKesson from $650.00 to $675.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Bank of America upped their price target on shares of McKesson from $665.00 to $755.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Three 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $668.50.

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.