McKesson (NYSE:MCK) Rating Increased to Strong-Buy at StockNews.com

McKesson (NYSE:MCK) was upgraded by research analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note issued on Thursday.

A number of other research analysts also recently weighed in on MCK. SVB Leerink initiated coverage on shares of McKesson in a research report on Monday, February 26th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $600.00 target price for the company. Leerink Partnrs reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of McKesson in a research report on Monday, February 26th. Argus raised their target price on shares of McKesson from $510.00 to $570.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of McKesson from $522.00 to $548.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of McKesson from $575.00 to $620.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $533.50.

McKesson Stock Performance

MCK opened at $543.37 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $528.15 and its two-hundred day moving average is $489.48. The firm has a market cap of $71.40 billion, a PE ratio of 24.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.45. McKesson has a twelve month low of $352.34 and a twelve month high of $544.81.

McKesson (NYSE:MCK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 7th. The company reported $7.74 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.05 by $0.69. McKesson had a net margin of 0.99% and a negative return on equity of 262.63%. The business had revenue of $80.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $77.93 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $6.90 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 14.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that McKesson will post 27.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other McKesson news, EVP Leann B. Smith sold 186 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $496.00, for a total transaction of $92,256.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 1,511 shares in the company, valued at $749,456. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other news, EVP Leann B. Smith sold 186 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $496.00, for a total value of $92,256.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 1,511 shares in the company, valued at approximately $749,456. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Brian S. Tyler sold 3,473 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $524.55, for a total transaction of $1,821,762.15. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 43,445 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $22,789,074.75. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On McKesson

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MCK. Norges Bank bought a new position in McKesson during the fourth quarter worth about $1,024,140,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its position in McKesson by 1,044.5% during the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 821,262 shares of the company’s stock worth $380,228,000 after purchasing an additional 749,504 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its position in McKesson by 16.0% during the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,148,794 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,238,953,000 after purchasing an additional 708,438 shares during the period. TD Asset Management Inc boosted its position in McKesson by 202.8% during the fourth quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 602,138 shares of the company’s stock worth $278,778,000 after purchasing an additional 403,312 shares during the period. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted its position in McKesson by 14.0% during the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 2,398,380 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,042,937,000 after purchasing an additional 294,832 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 85.07% of the company’s stock.

About McKesson

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.