Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. Raises Holdings in Elevance Health, Inc. (NYSE:ELV)

Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Elevance Health, Inc. (NYSE:ELV) by 20.0% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 666 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 111 shares during the quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Elevance Health were worth $246,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ELV. Raelipskie Partnership acquired a new stake in Elevance Health in the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in Elevance Health in the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Dunhill Financial LLC increased its holdings in Elevance Health by 57.8% in the 3rd 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. acquired a new stake in Elevance Health in the 3rd quarter valued at $44,000. Finally, Financial Perspectives Inc acquired a new stake in Elevance Health in the 4th quarter valued at $50,000. 89.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on ELV shares. StockNews.com upgraded Elevance Health from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, March 1st. 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 research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $485.00 target price on shares of Elevance Health in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Truist Financial lowered their target price on Elevance Health from $520.00 to $480.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Argus restated a “hold” rating and set a $405.40 target price on shares of Elevance Health in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $517.03.

Elevance Health Stock Performance

Shares of ELV stock opened at $409.59 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 1.50 and a current ratio of 1.45. Elevance Health, Inc. has a one year low of $362.21 and a one year high of $567.26. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $390.64 and its 200-day simple moving average is $433.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $93.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.99, a PEG ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 0.86.

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

Elevance Health Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be issued a $1.71 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $6.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.67%. 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%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Charles Morgan Kendrick, Jr. sold 3,504 shares of Elevance Health stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $396.30, for a total transaction of $1,388,635.20. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 10,116 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,008,970.80. The trade was a 25.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.35% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Elevance Health Profile

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.