Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS Sells 775 Shares of McKesson Co. (NYSE:MCK)

Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS cut its position in shares of McKesson Co. (NYSE:MCK) by 23.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,500 shares of the company’s stock after selling 775 shares during the period. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS’s holdings in McKesson were worth $1,425,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Old North State Trust LLC increased its holdings in McKesson by 1.6% in the third quarter. Old North State Trust LLC now owns 1,138 shares of the company’s stock valued at $563,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares during the last quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont increased its holdings in McKesson by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 393 shares of the company’s stock valued at $224,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares during the last quarter. Hemington Wealth Management increased its holdings in McKesson by 18.6% in the fourth quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 115 shares of the company’s stock valued at $65,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares during the last quarter. Black Diamond Financial LLC increased its holdings in McKesson by 1.3% in the third quarter. Black Diamond Financial LLC now owns 1,525 shares of the company’s stock valued at $754,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Calamos Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in McKesson by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Calamos Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,677 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,665,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. 85.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Brian S. Tyler sold 8,961 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $600.66, for a total value of $5,382,514.26. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 69,625 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $41,820,952.50. This trade represents a 11.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Leann B. Smith sold 579 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $572.79, for a total value of $331,645.41. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 864 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $494,890.56. The trade was a 40.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 10,307 shares of company stock valued at $6,177,790 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.11% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on MCK shares. Citigroup lowered their price target on McKesson from $713.00 to $677.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 10th. Bank of America lowered their price target on McKesson from $680.00 to $650.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Robert W. Baird upgraded McKesson from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $531.00 to $688.00 in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Evercore ISI increased their price target on McKesson from $650.00 to $675.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on McKesson from $535.00 to $641.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $645.79.

McKesson Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MCK opened at $602.41 on Thursday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $588.11 and a 200 day moving average price of $562.19. McKesson Co. has a 52 week low of $464.42 and a 52 week high of $637.51. The stock has a market capitalization of $75.50 billion, a PE ratio of 27.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 0.52.

McKesson (NYSE:MCK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $8.03 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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, research analysts forecast that McKesson Co. will post 32.77 EPS for the current year.

McKesson Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.71 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $2.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.47%. McKesson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.