CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) Shares Down 0.4% – Here’s What Happened

CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) dropped 0.4% during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $55.76 and last traded at $56.60. Approximately 2,155,784 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 83% from the average daily volume of 12,922,054 shares. The stock had previously closed at $56.82.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CVS has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Edward Jones raised shares of CVS Health from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Piper Sandler decreased their target price on shares of CVS Health from $72.00 to $64.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 25th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on shares of CVS Health from $68.00 to $58.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 15th. Mizuho decreased their target price on shares of CVS Health from $73.00 to $66.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of CVS Health from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $60.00 to $66.00 in a report on Monday, November 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $68.12.

CVS Health Trading Up 0.1 %

The company has a market cap of $71.60 billion, a PE ratio of 14.41, a P/E/G ratio of 0.62 and a beta of 0.59. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $51.27 and its 200-day moving average is $56.17. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The pharmacy operator reported $1.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $95.43 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $92.72 billion. CVS Health had a net margin of 1.36% and a return on equity of 10.72%. CVS Health’s revenue was up 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.21 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that CVS Health Co. will post 5.18 EPS for the current year.

CVS Health Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 23rd will be paid a $0.665 dividend. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.68%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 23rd. CVS Health’s dividend payout ratio is currently 67.51%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in CVS Health during the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Ridgewood Investments LLC grew its holdings in CVS Health by 255.7% during the 4th quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC now owns 626 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 450 shares in the last quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC bought a new position in CVS Health during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Livelsberger Financial Advisory bought a new position in CVS Health during the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new position in CVS Health during the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. 80.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About CVS Health

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.