McKesson Corporation (NYSE:MCK) Short Interest Up 81.9% in May

McKesson Corporation (NYSE:MCK) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in the month of May. As of May 29th, there was short interest totaling 5,237,307 shares, an increase of 81.9% from the May 14th total of 2,879,151 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,583,536 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.3 days. Currently, 4.4% of the company’s shares are sold short.

McKesson Stock Down 0.8%

Shares of NYSE MCK traded down $6.56 during trading on Monday, reaching $777.49. 336,903 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 893,193. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $798.10 and its 200 day moving average price is $846.19. McKesson has a twelve month low of $637.00 and a twelve month high of $999.00. The company has a market capitalization of $93.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.31.

McKesson (NYSE:MCK) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $11.69 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $11.56 by $0.13. McKesson had a net margin of 1.18% and a negative return on equity of 345.35%. The business had revenue of $96.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $101.35 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $10.12 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. McKesson has set its FY 2027 guidance at 43.800-44.600 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that McKesson will post 44.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

McKesson Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Investors of record on Monday, June 1st will be issued a $0.82 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 1st. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. McKesson’s dividend payout ratio is currently 8.53%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MCK has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of McKesson from $1,050.00 to $925.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, June 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of McKesson from $1,107.00 to $1,015.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Citigroup cut their target price on shares of McKesson from $975.00 to $945.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 14th. Raymond James Financial set a $970.00 target price on shares of McKesson in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, Bank of America cut their target price on shares of McKesson from $1,040.00 to $1,000.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, McKesson currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $960.53.

Insider Activity at McKesson

In related news, CEO Brian S. Tyler sold 4,929 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $763.00, for a total value of $3,760,827.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 22,845 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,430,735. The trade was a 17.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Thomas L. Rodgers sold 699 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $735.27, for a total transaction of $513,953.73. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 2,268 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,667,592.36. The trade was a 23.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 11,822 shares of company stock valued at $8,986,212 in the last ninety days. 0.08% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of McKesson

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MCK. Cullen Investment Group LTD. raised its holdings in shares of McKesson by 550.4% in the fourth quarter. Cullen Investment Group LTD. now owns 4,670 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,811,000 after buying an additional 3,952 shares during the last quarter. Pensionfund Sabic bought a new position in shares of McKesson in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,887,000. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management raised its holdings in shares of McKesson by 18.8% in the third quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management now owns 10,009 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,732,000 after buying an additional 1,585 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of McKesson by 24.3% in the third quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 242,256 shares of the company’s stock valued at $187,152,000 after buying an additional 47,352 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Achmea Investment Management B.V. raised its holdings in shares of McKesson by 7.5% in the third quarter. Achmea Investment Management B.V. now owns 61,287 shares of the company’s stock valued at $47,347,000 after buying an additional 4,260 shares during the last quarter. 85.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About McKesson

McKesson Corporation (NYSE: MCK) is a global healthcare services and distribution company that supplies pharmaceuticals, medical-surgical products and health care technology solutions. Founded in 1833 and headquartered in Irving, Texas, McKesson operates across the drug distribution and healthcare services value chain, connecting manufacturers, pharmacies, hospitals and health systems to help manage the movement of medicines and clinical supplies.

The company’s core activities include pharmaceutical wholesale distribution and logistics, specialty pharmacy services, and the provision of medical-surgical supplies to acute and non-acute care providers.