CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) Shares Sold by LPL Financial LLC

LPL Financial LLC lessened its position in shares of CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) by 15.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 1,079,222 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock after selling 190,153 shares during the quarter. LPL Financial LLC’s holdings in CVS Health were worth $48,446,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new position in shares of CVS Health in the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. Ridgewood Investments LLC boosted its holdings in CVS Health by 255.7% in the 4th quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC now owns 626 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 450 shares during the last quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of CVS Health in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of CVS Health during the third quarter worth approximately $40,000. Finally, Hopwood Financial Services Inc. purchased a new position in CVS Health in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.66% of the company’s stock.

CVS Health Trading Up 0.6 %

NYSE:CVS opened at $67.59 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $61.83 and a 200 day moving average price of $57.60. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. The firm has a market cap of $85.22 billion, a PE ratio of 18.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.54. CVS Health Co. has a 12-month low of $43.56 and a 12-month high of $80.75.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The pharmacy operator reported $1.19 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.89 by $0.30. CVS Health had a net margin of 1.24% and a return on equity of 9.11%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that CVS Health Co. will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CVS Health Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 22nd will be issued a $0.665 dividend. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.94%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 22nd. CVS Health’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 72.68%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Michael F. Mahoney bought 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $66.70 per share, for a total transaction of $2,001,000.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 39,356 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,625,045.20. This represents a 320.65 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP James David Clark sold 7,513 shares of CVS Health stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.35, for a total transaction of $498,487.55. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 8,394 shares in the company, valued at $556,941.90. This represents a 47.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.24% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently commented on CVS. Piper Sandler increased their target price on shares of CVS Health from $72.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on CVS Health from $80.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Cantor Fitzgerald raised CVS Health from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Wolfe Research upped their target price on CVS Health from 67.00 to 70.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded CVS Health from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $66.00 price target on the stock in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, CVS Health has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $70.39.

CVS Health Profile

CVS Health Corporation provides health solutions in the United States. It operates through Health Care Benefits, Health Services, and Pharmacy & Consumer Wellness segments. The Health Care Benefits segment offers traditional, voluntary, and consumer-directed health insurance products and related services.