National Bank of Canada FI Cuts Stock Holdings in CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS)

National Bank of Canada FI cut its position in CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) by 27.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,122,168 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock after selling 416,194 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI owned 0.09% of CVS Health worth $90,683,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Atticus Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of CVS Health by 149.0% during the 4th quarter. Atticus Wealth Management LLC now owns 366 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 219 shares during the last quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC grew its stake in shares of CVS Health by 111.5% in the 3rd quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 461 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 243 shares during the period. ZRC Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of CVS Health by 400.0% during the 4th quarter. ZRC Wealth Management LLC now owns 500 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 400 shares during the period. Coston McIsaac & Partners lifted its holdings in CVS Health by 42.6% in the fourth quarter. Coston McIsaac & Partners now owns 539 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 161 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners purchased a new position in CVS Health in the fourth quarter worth approximately $50,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.66% of the company’s stock.

CVS Health Stock Performance

Shares of CVS Health stock traded up $0.75 on Friday, hitting $55.90. The stock had a trading volume of 23,946,075 shares, compared to its average volume of 12,498,538. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $72.77 and its 200 day moving average price is $73.29. The stock has a market cap of $70.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.82, a P/E/G ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78. CVS Health Co. has a 52-week low of $53.70 and a 52-week high of $83.25.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 1st. The pharmacy operator reported $1.31 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.69 by ($0.38). CVS Health had a net margin of 2.03% and a return on equity of 13.53%. The firm had revenue of $88.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $89.33 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.20 earnings per share. CVS Health’s revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that CVS Health Co. will post 7.03 EPS for the current year.

CVS Health Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Investors of record on Monday, April 22nd were issued a dividend of $0.665 per share. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.76%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 19th. CVS Health’s dividend payout ratio is currently 46.75%.

Insider Transactions at CVS Health

In other news, EVP Prem S. Shah sold 29,473 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.95, for a total transaction of $2,267,947.35. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 39,765 shares in the company, valued at $3,059,916.75. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, Director Edward J. Ludwig acquired 1,000 shares of CVS Health stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 2nd. The stock was purchased at an average price of $53.88 per share, for a total transaction of $53,880.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 21,630 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,165,424.40. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Prem S. Shah sold 29,473 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.95, for a total transaction of $2,267,947.35. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 39,765 shares in the company, valued at $3,059,916.75. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently commented on CVS. SVB Leerink reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and issued a $60.00 price target (down previously from $87.00) on shares of CVS Health in a research note on Wednesday. Leerink Partnrs downgraded shares of CVS Health from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of CVS Health from $78.00 to $63.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Piper Sandler raised their target price on CVS Health from $93.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, March 15th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on shares of CVS Health from $86.00 to $84.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $80.35.

CVS Health Company 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.