B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG Lowers Stake in McKesson Co. (NYSE:MCK)

B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG cut its stake in McKesson Co. (NYSE:MCK) by 2.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,250 shares of the company’s stock after selling 94 shares during the period. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG’s holdings in McKesson were worth $2,422,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of McKesson by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,653,288 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,306,873,000 after purchasing an additional 26,299 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in McKesson in the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,200,361,000. Boston Partners grew its position in McKesson by 24.6% during the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,096,301 shares of the company’s stock valued at $625,501,000 after acquiring an additional 216,432 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its stake in shares of McKesson by 20.0% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 975,935 shares of the company’s stock worth $558,606,000 after acquiring an additional 162,688 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Alliancebernstein L.P. lifted its holdings in shares of McKesson by 46.6% in the 4th quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 855,332 shares of the company’s stock worth $487,462,000 after acquiring an additional 272,068 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.07% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on MCK shares. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of McKesson from $641.00 to $691.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on McKesson from $650.00 to $675.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Bank of America dropped their target price on McKesson from $680.00 to $650.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. StockNews.com cut McKesson from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on McKesson from $612.00 to $642.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $649.36.

McKesson Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MCK opened at $674.30 on Wednesday. McKesson Co. has a 1 year low of $464.42 and a 1 year high of $678.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $84.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.87, a P/E/G ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.52. The company’s 50-day moving average is $626.97 and its 200 day moving average is $582.06.

McKesson (NYSE:MCK) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $8.03 earnings per share 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%. Research analysts anticipate that McKesson Co. will post 32.77 earnings per share for the current year.

McKesson Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.71 per share. This represents a $2.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.42%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. McKesson’s payout ratio is currently 13.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling at McKesson

In other news, CEO Brian S. Tyler sold 8,961 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $597.99, for a total value of $5,358,588.39. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 60,664 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $36,276,465.36. This represents a 12.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Leann B. Smith sold 579 shares of McKesson stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $572.79, for a total value of $331,645.41. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly 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. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 18,689 shares of company stock valued at $11,187,351. Corporate insiders own 0.11% of the company’s stock.

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.