Hancock Whitney Corp Reduces Stock Holdings in Elevance Health, Inc. (NYSE:ELV)

Hancock Whitney Corp lowered its stake in Elevance Health, Inc. (NYSE:ELV) by 3.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,449 shares of the company’s stock after selling 127 shares during the period. Hancock Whitney Corp’s holdings in Elevance Health were worth $1,869,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in ELV. Bell Investment Advisors Inc increased its position in shares of Elevance Health by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Bell Investment Advisors Inc now owns 989 shares of the company’s stock valued at $466,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the period. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC raised its position in shares of Elevance Health by 8.8% in the 1st quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 248 shares of the company’s stock worth $129,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Bedel Financial Consulting Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Elevance Health by 1.6% in the 1st quarter. Bedel Financial Consulting Inc. now owns 1,247 shares of the company’s stock valued at $647,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. American Trust boosted its position in shares of Elevance Health by 2.6% during the first quarter. American Trust now owns 775 shares of the company’s stock valued at $402,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sage Rhino Capital LLC grew its stake in Elevance Health by 4.6% in the first quarter. Sage Rhino Capital LLC now owns 474 shares of the company’s stock worth $246,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the period. 89.24% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Elevance Health

In other news, Director Robert L. Dixon, Jr. sold 305 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $506.76, for a total value of $154,561.80. Following the transaction, the director now owns 9,721 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,926,213.96. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, Director Robert L. Dixon, Jr. sold 305 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, July 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $506.76, for a total value of $154,561.80. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 9,721 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,926,213.96. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Ramiro G. Peru sold 753 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $531.52, for a total value of $400,234.56. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 8,744 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,647,610.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 35,058 shares of company stock worth $17,588,116 in the last three months. 0.35% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently commented on ELV. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Elevance Health from $628.00 to $631.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, May 30th. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $615.00 price objective on shares of Elevance Health in a report on Thursday, September 5th. Bank of America reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $530.00 target price (down from $646.00) on shares of Elevance Health in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Baird R W upgraded Elevance Health to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $600.00 price objective on shares of Elevance Health in a research note on Friday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $604.29.

Elevance Health Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ELV opened at $539.86 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a current ratio of 1.49. The firm has a market cap of $125.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 0.82. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $536.19 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $529.30. Elevance Health, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $431.38 and a fifty-two week high of $567.26.

Elevance Health (NYSE:ELV) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 17th. The company reported $10.12 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.99 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $43.22 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $42.99 billion. Elevance Health had a net margin of 3.89% and a return on equity of 20.64%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $9.04 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that Elevance Health, Inc. will post 37.25 earnings per share for the current year.

Elevance Health Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 10th will be given a $1.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 10th. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.21%. Elevance Health’s payout ratio is 24.64%.

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.