Short Interest in Elevance Health, Inc. (NYSE:ELV) Increases By 22.7%

Elevance Health, Inc. (NYSE:ELV) saw a large increase in short interest during the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totaling 4,764,383 shares, an increase of 22.7% from the November 30th total of 3,883,536 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,706,213 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.8 days. Approximately 2.2% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Approximately 2.2% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 1,706,213 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.8 days.

Elevance Health Trading Up 0.5%

ELV opened at $350.59 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 1.56 and a quick ratio of 1.56. Elevance Health has a fifty-two week low of $273.71 and a fifty-two week high of $458.75. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $334.12 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $328.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $77.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.33, a PEG ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 0.51.

Elevance Health (NYSE:ELV) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 21st. The company reported $6.03 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.03 by $1.00. Elevance Health had a net margin of 2.84% and a return on equity of 16.17%. The company had revenue of $50.09 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $49.26 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $8.37 earnings per share. Elevance Health’s revenue was up 12.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Elevance Health will post 33.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Elevance Health Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 5th were given a $1.71 dividend. This represents a $6.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 5th. Elevance Health’s payout ratio is 27.96%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on ELV shares. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on Elevance Health from $297.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Elevance Health from $395.00 to $385.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 22nd. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Elevance Health from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, December 13th. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Elevance Health from $330.00 to $370.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 10th. Finally, Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Elevance Health in a research note on Wednesday, November 26th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $396.21.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Elevance Health

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. AIA Group Ltd raised its holdings in Elevance Health by 71.9% during the 3rd quarter. AIA Group Ltd now owns 11,125 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,595,000 after purchasing an additional 4,655 shares during the last quarter. Mirabella Financial Services LLP raised its stake in Elevance Health by 186.6% during the third quarter. Mirabella Financial Services LLP now owns 8,413 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,713,000 after buying an additional 5,478 shares during the last quarter. Saranac Partners Ltd bought a new position in Elevance Health during the third quarter worth $115,000. Prana Capital Management LP lifted its holdings in Elevance Health by 798.9% in the third quarter. Prana Capital Management LP now owns 51,633 shares of the company’s stock valued at $16,684,000 after buying an additional 45,889 shares during the period. Finally, CIBC Bancorp USA Inc. bought a new stake in Elevance Health during the third quarter valued at $10,047,000. 89.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Elevance Health Company Profile

Elevance Health, Inc (NYSE: ELV) is a large U.S.-based health benefits company that provides a broad range of health insurance products and related services. Headquartered in Indianapolis, the company rebranded from Anthem, Inc to Elevance Health in 2022 while continuing to operate consumer-facing health plans under established state and national brands. Gail Boudreaux serves as chief executive officer and president, leading the company’s strategic focus on integrated health care and benefit delivery.

Elevance’s core activities include offering medical and specialty health plans for individuals, employers and government programs, including Medicare and Medicaid managed-care products.