Essex Financial Services Inc. Purchases 105 Shares of McKesson Co. (NYSE:MCK)

Essex Financial Services Inc. boosted its position in shares of McKesson Co. (NYSE:MCK) by 3.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,959 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the period. Essex Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in McKesson were worth $1,687,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC raised its stake in shares of McKesson by 742.9% in the third quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 59 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in McKesson during the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new position in McKesson in the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. Synergy Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in McKesson in the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in shares of McKesson in the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. 85.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Leann B. Smith sold 579 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $572.79, for a total transaction of $331,645.41. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 864 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $494,890.56. This represents a 40.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.11% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently issued reports on MCK shares. Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of McKesson from $650.00 to $675.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Mizuho assumed coverage on shares of McKesson in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $630.00 target price on the stock. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of McKesson from $713.00 to $677.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of McKesson from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $531.00 to $688.00 in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Baird R W raised McKesson from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $645.79.

McKesson Trading Up 1.2 %

Shares of MCK opened at $610.57 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $77.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 0.52. McKesson Co. has a 1 year low of $464.42 and a 1 year high of $637.51. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $588.04 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $562.60.

McKesson (NYSE:MCK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $8.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $8.60 by ($0.57). McKesson had a net margin of 0.82% and a negative return on equity of 181.26%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that McKesson Co. will post 32.69 EPS for the current year.

McKesson Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.71 per share. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.47%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. McKesson’s dividend payout ratio is currently 13.00%.

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.