Howard Capital Management Inc. Acquires 72 Shares of Elevance Health, Inc. (NYSE:ELV)

Howard Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Elevance Health, Inc. (NYSE:ELV) by 5.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,524 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Elevance Health were worth $562,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Raelipskie Partnership bought a new position in shares of Elevance Health during the third quarter valued at $26,000. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new position in shares of Elevance Health during the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. Dunhill Financial LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Elevance Health by 57.8% during the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 71 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares in the last quarter. Peterson Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Elevance Health during the third quarter valued at $44,000. Finally, Financial Perspectives Inc bought a new position in shares of Elevance Health during the fourth quarter valued at $50,000. 89.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Elevance Health Stock Performance

Shares of ELV opened at $384.91 on Tuesday. 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 has a 50-day simple moving average of $385.48 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $442.23. The stock has a market cap of $87.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.03, a PEG ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 0.83. Elevance Health, Inc. has a 52 week low of $362.21 and a 52 week high of $567.26.

Elevance Health (NYSE:ELV) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The company reported $3.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.80 by $0.04. Elevance Health had a return on equity of 18.28% and a net margin of 3.38%. On average, analysts expect that Elevance Health, Inc. will post 33.96 EPS for the current year.

Elevance Health Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a dividend of $1.71 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $6.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.78%. This is a boost from Elevance Health’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. Elevance Health’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.71%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ELV has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. StockNews.com downgraded Elevance Health from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $485.00 target price on shares of Elevance Health in a report on Friday, January 24th. Barclays increased their target price on Elevance Health from $501.00 to $512.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Mizuho lowered their target price on Elevance Health from $585.00 to $505.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Stephens downgraded Elevance Health from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $520.00 to $440.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Elevance Health currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $517.03.

About Elevance Health

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.