NYSE · Healthcare

Elevance Health, Inc.

ELV · Healthcare Plans

$388.50

▼ -2.77 (-0.71%)

Cached · 10 min

Overall Grade

Defensive

Enterprising

Profitability

F⤢

Net Income Margin 3.5%

Fin. Health

F⤢

Years to Pay Off Debt 18.1 yrs

Valuation

F⤢

Margin of Safety 0.0%

Price-to-Book 1.92x

Cash Flow

A⤢

Free Cash Flow $4.1B

CapEx % of Net Income 13.3%

Owner Earnings $2.4B

Cash Flow

Free Cash Flow $4.1B

Operating cash flow minus capital expenditures. Buffett's most important metric — cash a business actually generates for its owners after maintaining and growing its asset base. Consistently positive FCF is one of the strongest indicators of a durable, well-run business regardless of accounting profits.

CapEx % of Net Income 13.3%

Capital expenditure as a share of net income. Low CapEx signals a capital-light business that doesn't need heavy reinvestment to sustain earnings — Buffett's ideal. High CapEx is structurally necessary in manufacturing, airlines, telecoms, and semiconductors. For these industries, a high reading reflects the business model, not poor management.

Owner Earnings $2.4B

Net Income + Depreciation & Amortisation − Capital Expenditures. Buffett's preferred measure of a company's true annual earning power — what could theoretically be distributed to owners without impairing the business. More reliable than reported EPS because it accounts for the capital cost of maintaining the business.

Defensive — Graham's strict criteria (P/B, P/E, dividends, stability) · Enterprising — Profitability & cash flow focused, accepts higher valuations for quality

About Elevance Health, Inc.

Elevance Health, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, operates as a health benefits company in the United States. The company operates in four segments: Health Benefits, CarelonRx, Carelon Services, and Corporate & Other. It offers a variety of health plans and services to individual, employer group risk-based and fee-based, BlueCard, Medicare, Medicaid, and FEP members; health products; a broad array of fee-based administrative managed care services; and specialty and other insurance products and services, such as stop loss, dental, vision, and supplemental health insurance benefits. The company also operates in the pharmacy services business; and markets and offers pharmacy services, including home delivery and specialty pharmacies, claims adjudication, formulary management, pharmacy networks, rebate administration, a prescription drug database, and member services, as well as infusion services and injectable therapies through ambulatory infusion centers. In addition, it provides healthcare related services and capabilities, including specialty care enablement and utilization management support for specialized clinical domains; behavioral health and comprehensive care management services; palliative care services and management; virtual care; and payment integrity, subrogation, clinical data exchange through its HealthOS platform, research and data, reporting and clinical analytics, information technology, and business process support services, as well as manages home health, post-acute institutional management, and durable medical equipment costs; and supports plans in managing home and community-based services. The company provides its services under the Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield, Wellpoint, and Carelon brands. The company was formerly known as Anthem, Inc. and changed its name to Elevance Health, Inc. in June 2022. Elevance Health, Inc. was incorporated in 2001 and is based in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Metric Explanations

What each dimension measures and where the thresholds come from.

Market Data

Market Cap $84.4B

Enterprise Value $81.3B

P/E (TTM) 16.47

Dividend Yield 1.75%

Exchange NYSE

Key Margins

Gross Profit N/A

Operating Margin N/A

Net Margin 3.5%

Company Info

Sector Healthcare

Industry Healthcare Plans

Employees 96129

Country United States

Visit website

📖

Full Graham Analysis

Mr. Market is currently offering Elevance Health, Inc. at $388.50.

The business passes only 3 of 6 of Graham's defensive criteria — well below his required standard.

At $388.50, the stock trades at a 104% premium to its Graham Number of $190.76. Graham would consider this price speculative.

There is no margin of safety at the current price. Graham would advise patience and waiting for a better entry point.

Conclusion: By Graham's standards, this stock is speculative at its current price. The intelligent investor would look elsewhere or wait.

Showing Key Metrics

Income Highlights

Metric	Q1 2026	Q4 2025	Q4 2024
Gross Profit %	N/A•	N/A•	N/A
Operating Margin %	N/A•	N/A•	N/A
Net Income %	3.5%▲	1.1%•	N/A
Diluted EPS	8.00▲	2.47•	N/A

Balance Sheet Highlights

Metric	Q1 2026	Q4 2025	Q3 2024
Total Assets	$125.8B	$121.5B	N/A
Total Debt	$31.8B▼	$32.0B•	N/A
Working Capital	N/A•	N/A•	N/A
Years to Pay Debt	18.05	58.59	N/A

Cash Flow Highlights

Metric	Q1 2026	Q4 2025	Q4 2024
Free Cash Flow	$4.1B▲	-$209M•	N/A
Owner Earnings	$2.4B	$1.2B	N/A
CapEx % of Net Income	13.3%	53.6%	N/A

Income Statement

	2026	2025	2024
Tax Rate For Calcs	0	0
Total Unusual Items		0	0
Total Unusual Items Excluding Goodwill		0	0
Net Income From Continuing Operation Net Minority Interest	1,764,000	547,000
Reconciled Depreciation	354,000	406,000
EBIT	2,661,000	581,000
Net Interest Income	-357,000	-366,000
Interest Expense	357,000	366,000
Normalized Income	1,764,000	547,000
Net Income From Continuing And Discontinued Operation	1,764,000	547,000
Total Expenses	47,877,000	49,532,000
Diluted Average Shares	220,500	221,800
Basic Average Shares	217,368	220,724
Diluted EPS	0	0
Basic EPS	0	0
Diluted NI Availto Com Stockholders	1,764,000	547,000
Net Income Common Stockholders	1,764,000	547,000
Net Income	1,764,000	547,000
Minority Interests	4,000	1,000
Net Income Including Noncontrolling Interests	1,760,000	546,000
Net Income Continuous Operations	1,760,000	546,000
Tax Provision	544,000	-331,000
Pretax Income	2,304,000	215,000
Other Income Expense	6,225,000	6,460,000
Special Income Charges		0	0
Other Special Charges			0
Net Non Operating Interest Income Expense	-357,000	-366,000
Interest Expense Non Operating	357,000	366,000
Other Operating Expenses	11,793,000	10,937,000
Depreciation And Amortization In Income Statement	112,000	164,000
Amortization	112,000	164,000
Total Revenue	50,181,000	49,747,000
Operating Revenue	50,181,000	49,747,000
Loss Adjustment Expense	35,615,000	38,065,000
Net Policyholder Benefits And Claims	35,615,000	38,065,000

Balance Sheet

	2026	2025	2024
Ordinary Shares Number	217,368	220,724
Share Issued	217,368	220,724
Net Debt	22,185,000	22,555,000
Total Debt	31,842,000	32,046,000
Tangible Book Value	4,469,000	4,338,000
Invested Capital	75,744,000	75,928,000
Net Tangible Assets	4,469,000	4,338,000
Common Stock Equity	43,902,000	43,882,000
Total Capitalization	74,670,000	74,679,000
Total Equity Gross Minority Interest	44,042,000	44,026,000
Minority Interest	140,000	144,000
Stockholders Equity	43,902,000	43,882,000
Gains Losses Not Affecting Retained Earnings	-741,000	-451,000
Other Equity Adjustments	-741,000	-451,000
Retained Earnings	35,796,000	35,393,000
Additional Paid In Capital	8,845,000	8,938,000
Capital Stock	2,000	2,000
Common Stock	2,000	2,000
Total Liabilities Net Minority Interest	81,785,000	77,468,000
Non Current Deferred Liabilities	1,786,000	2,110,000
Non Current Deferred Taxes Liabilities	1,786,000	2,110,000
Long Term Debt And Capital Lease Obligation	30,768,000	30,797,000
Long Term Debt	30,768,000	30,797,000
Current Deferred Liabilities	1,759,000	1,493,000
Current Deferred Revenue	1,759,000	1,493,000
Current Debt And Capital Lease Obligation	1,074,000	1,249,000
Current Debt	1,074,000	1,249,000
Other Current Borrowings	1,074,000	1,249,000
Current Notes Payable			2,100,000
Payables And Accrued Expenses	24,634,000	24,406,000
Payables	24,634,000	24,406,000
Accounts Payable	24,634,000	24,406,000
Total Assets	125,827,000	121,494,000
Investments And Advances	28,530,000	27,745,000
Goodwill And Other Intangible Assets	39,433,000	39,544,000
Other Intangible Assets	11,093,000	11,200,000
Goodwill	28,340,000	28,344,000
Net PPE	4,657,000	4,679,000
Receivables	22,790,000	21,542,000
Other Receivables	11,265,000	11,469,000
Accounts Receivable	11,525,000	10,073,000
Cash Cash Equivalents And Short Term Investments	35,562,000	35,375,000
Other Short Term Investments	25,905,000	25,884,000
Cash And Cash Equivalents	9,657,000	9,491,000

Cash Flow

	2026	2025	2024
Free Cash Flow	4,097,000	-209,000
Repurchase Of Capital Stock	-1,124,000	-471,000
Repayment Of Debt	-2,052,000	-542,000
Issuance Of Debt	724,000	2,133,000
Capital Expenditure	-235,000	-293,000
End Cash Position	9,657,000	9,491,000
Other Cash Adjustment Outside Changein Cash		0	-46,000
Beginning Cash Position	9,491,000	8,713,000
Effect Of Exchange Rate Changes	-9,000	-6,000
Changes In Cash	175,000	784,000
Financing Cash Flow	-2,515,000	236,000
Cash Flow From Continuing Financing Activities	-2,515,000	236,000
Net Other Financing Charges	-37,000	11,000
Proceeds From Stock Option Exercised	37,000	58,000
Cash Dividends Paid	-376,000	-377,000
Common Stock Dividend Paid	-376,000	-377,000
Net Common Stock Issuance	-1,124,000	-471,000
Common Stock Payments	-1,124,000	-471,000
Net Issuance Payments Of Debt	-1,328,000	1,591,000
Net Short Term Debt Issuance	-578,000	1,591,000
Short Term Debt Payments	-1,302,000	-545,000
Short Term Debt Issuance	724,000	2,136,000
Net Long Term Debt Issuance	-750,000	0
Long Term Debt Payments	-750,000	3,000
Long Term Debt Issuance		-3,000	5,130,000
Investing Cash Flow	-1,642,000	464,000
Cash Flow From Continuing Investing Activities	-1,642,000	464,000
Net Other Investing Changes	-323,000	243,000
Net Investment Purchase And Sale	-1,089,000	481,000
Sale Of Investment	3,646,000	3,242,000
Purchase Of Investment	-4,735,000	-2,761,000
Net Business Purchase And Sale	5,000	33,000
Sale Of Business	5,000	33,000
Purchase Of Business			-3,685,000
Net PPE Purchase And Sale	-235,000	-293,000
Purchase Of PPE	-235,000	-293,000
Operating Cash Flow	4,332,000	84,000
Cash Flow From Continuing Operating Activities	4,332,000	84,000
Change In Working Capital	2,660,000	-524,000
Change In Other Working Capital	910,000	-652,000
Change In Other Current Assets	-1,552,000	530,000
Change In Payables And Accrued Expense	2,886,000	-2,259,000
Change In Payable	2,886,000	-2,259,000
Change In Account Payable	2,886,000	-2,259,000
Change In Receivables	-1,174,000	756,000
Stock Based Compensation	55,000	30,000
Asset Impairment Charge	4,000	38,000	0
Deferred Tax	-274,000	-322,000
Deferred Income Tax	-274,000	-322,000
Depreciation And Amortization	354,000	406,000
Operating Gains Losses	-227,000	-90,000
Earnings Losses From Equity Investments	-305,000	-147,000
Gain Loss On Investment Securities	78,000	57,000
Gain Loss On Sale Of Business		0	0
Net Income From Continuing Operations	1,760,000	546,000

📊 Quarterly mode — Graham Fair Value & 7 Criteria require annual data. Switch to Annual for full analysis.

Quarter vs Same Quarter Last Year

YoY strips seasonality

Revenue Growth (YoY)

Prior year: $48.9B ▲ $50.2B +2.6%

Revenue growth vs same quarter last year strips seasonality. Consistent double-digit growth is a Buffett hallmark.

Net Margin

Prior year: 4.5% ▼ 3.5% -0.9pp

Net margin can be distorted by one-time items, tax timing, or interest costs — compare to operating margin for signal quality.

Quarterly Health Checks

3 Graham/Buffett criteria that are valid and reliable on quarterly data

✅ Adequate Size

Graham required scale for resilience. Quarterly revenue × 4 gives an annualised proxy.

$50.2B/qtr (≈$200.7B ann.)

vs > $1.5B annualised revenue

✅ Free Cash Flow

Buffett's most important single metric. A positive FCF quarter means the business generated real cash for owners after maintaining its asset base.

$4.1B

vs Positive

Operating Cash Flow

$4.3B

Latest quarter · Buffett's cash reality check

ROIC

N/A

Based on latest annual operating income

Market Cap / Net Assets

1.9x

Net Assets: $44.0B

Peers & Industry

No auto-detected peers for Healthcare Plans. You can manually compare ELV against any stock using the Compare tool.

"The management of a business is its most important single factor — more important than market position, patents, or financial structure."

— Benjamin Graham

Capital Allocation & Alignment

Insider Ownership

0.18%

Low — management has little skin in the game

Return on Equity (ROE)

4.0%

Weak — poor returns on equity

Return on Assets (ROA)

1.4%

Poor — assets are not generating adequate returns

Share Buybacks (Latest Year)

$2.6B

Management is returning capital to shareholders via buybacks

Debt Trend YoY

-0.6% YoY

Debt is declining — management is deleveraging

Leadership Team

Gail Koziara Boudreaux

President, CEO & Director

Age 64

Pay: $4,942,272

0.280% of net income

Mark Bradley Kaye

Executive VP & CFO

Age 45

Pay: $2,007,060

0.114% of net income

Charles Morgan Kendrick Jr.

EVP and President of Commercial & Specialty Health Benefits

Age 59

Pay: $1,913,444

0.108% of net income

Nathan Allen Rich

Vice President of Investor Relations

Julie Goon

Senior Vice President of Public Affairs

Top Institutional Holders

Institution	% Owned	Shares
Blackrock Inc.	9.16%	19,887,111
Vanguard Capital Management LLC	6.61%	14,345,459
State Street Corporation	4.74%	10,288,696
Wellington Management Group, LLP	3.79%	8,228,537
Vanguard Portfolio Management LLC	2.93%	6,356,077
Sanders Capital, LLC	2.71%	5,894,303
Geode Capital Management, LLC	2.39%	5,192,707
Artisan Partners Limited Partnership	2.36%	5,127,175

Risk Analysis

Beta (Market Risk)

0.68

Low volatility — more stable than the market

Short Interest

3.4% of float

Low short interest — market is not heavily bearish

Debt-to-Equity

0.72x

Conservative balance sheet — low financial risk

Current Ratio

1.48x

Adequate liquidity

52-Week Price Range

Low: $273.71 Current: $388.50 High: $426.98

Currently at 75% of 52-week range