BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. Buys 13,748 Shares of McKesson Co. (NYSE:MCK)

BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. lifted its holdings in McKesson Co. (NYSE:MCK) by 12.1% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 127,374 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 13,748 shares during the quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. owned about 0.10% of McKesson worth $62,976,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in MCK. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund bought a new position in shares of McKesson in the first quarter valued at about $81,000. Advisors Asset Management Inc. increased its position in McKesson by 6.2% in the first quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 10,234 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,494,000 after purchasing an additional 601 shares during the period. Capital International Investors increased its position in McKesson by 51.3% in the first quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 332,187 shares of the company’s stock worth $178,335,000 after purchasing an additional 112,655 shares during the period. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board increased its position in McKesson by 29.3% in the first quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 248,912 shares of the company’s stock worth $133,628,000 after purchasing an additional 56,342 shares during the period. Finally, 1832 Asset Management L.P. acquired a new stake in McKesson in the first quarter worth about $102,000. 85.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at McKesson

In related news, CEO Brian S. Tyler sold 3,753 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $561.10, for a total value of $2,105,808.30. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 78,586 shares in the company, valued at approximately $44,094,604.60. This represents a 4.56 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.11% of the company’s stock.

McKesson Stock Performance

NYSE MCK opened at $628.15 on Friday. McKesson Co. has a 52 week low of $431.35 and a 52 week high of $637.51. The stock has a market capitalization of $79.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.53, a PEG ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 0.44. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $528.89 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $556.74.

McKesson (NYSE:MCK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The company reported $7.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.88 by $0.19. McKesson had a negative return on equity of 207.50% and a net margin of 0.77%. The company had revenue of $93.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $89.33 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $6.23 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 21.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that McKesson Co. will post 32.81 EPS for the current year.

McKesson Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.71 per share. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.45%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. McKesson’s dividend payout ratio is currently 14.71%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on MCK shares. Leerink Partners decreased their target price on McKesson from $665.00 to $630.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Citigroup boosted their target price on McKesson from $630.00 to $713.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Mizuho boosted their price objective on McKesson from $540.00 to $570.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on McKesson from $576.00 to $535.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, September 13th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price objective on McKesson from $623.00 to $579.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, McKesson has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $631.57.

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.