McKesson Co. (NYSE:MCK) Short Interest Update

McKesson Co. (NYSE:MCK) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,870,000 shares, an increase of 25.5% from the January 31st total of 1,490,000 shares. Approximately 1.5% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 763,600 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.4 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on MCK. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of McKesson from $535.00 to $641.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. StockNews.com lowered shares of McKesson from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Mizuho assumed coverage on shares of McKesson in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $630.00 target price on the stock. Robert W. Baird raised McKesson from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $531.00 to $688.00 in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Bank of America cut their price target on McKesson from $680.00 to $650.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $645.79.

McKesson Price Performance

McKesson stock traded up $6.70 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $648.39. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 128,463 shares, compared to its average volume of 778,823. McKesson has a 52-week low of $464.42 and a 52-week high of $653.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $81.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.70, a PEG ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.52. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $599.30 and its 200-day simple moving average is $566.69.

McKesson (NYSE:MCK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $8.03 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $8.60 by ($0.57). McKesson had a negative return on equity of 181.26% and a net margin of 0.82%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that McKesson will post 32.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

McKesson Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given 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 dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 13.00%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other McKesson news, CEO Brian S. Tyler sold 8,961 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 69,625 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $41,820,952.50. This trade represents a 11.40 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Leann B. Smith sold 579 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $572.79, for a total value of $331,645.41. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 864 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $494,890.56. This represents a 40.12 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 19,268 shares of company stock valued at $11,536,378. 0.11% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Capital A Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in McKesson in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC bought a new stake in McKesson in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Synergy Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of McKesson in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in McKesson in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Crews Bank & Trust bought a new position in shares of McKesson in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. 85.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.