Montag A & Associates Inc. Lowers Stock Holdings in CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS)

Montag A & Associates Inc. decreased its position in shares of CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) by 8.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 25,009 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock after selling 2,367 shares during the period. Montag A & Associates Inc.’s holdings in CVS Health were worth $1,995,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of CVS Health in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,092,040,000. Capital International Investors grew its stake in shares of CVS Health by 47.4% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 33,691,698 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $2,660,298,000 after buying an additional 10,837,801 shares during the last quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of CVS Health by 573.8% in the 1st quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 5,553,457 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $442,944,000 after buying an additional 4,729,207 shares during the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC grew its stake in shares of CVS Health by 306.6% in the 4th quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 3,046,216 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $240,529,000 after buying an additional 2,297,100 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Junto Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of CVS Health in the 4th quarter worth approximately $111,209,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.66% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Edward J. Ludwig purchased 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 2nd. The stock was acquired at an average price of $53.88 per share, with a total value of $53,880.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 21,630 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,165,424.40. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

CVS Health Stock Down 0.2 %

NYSE CVS traded down $0.10 on Monday, hitting $58.90. The stock had a trading volume of 3,089,868 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,735,141. CVS Health Co. has a 52-week low of $52.77 and a 52-week high of $83.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.61. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $58.20 and its 200 day moving average price is $68.75. The stock has a market cap of $73.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.56 and a beta of 0.52.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) last released its quarterly earnings results 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 return on equity of 13.53% and a net margin of 2.03%. The company had revenue of $88.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $89.33 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.20 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that CVS Health Co. will post 7.02 earnings per share for the current year.

CVS Health Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 22nd will be paid a $0.665 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 22nd. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.52%. CVS Health’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.75%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on CVS shares. Mizuho lowered their price objective on CVS Health from $86.00 to $72.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. UBS Group cut CVS Health from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $85.00 to $60.00 in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. Leerink Partnrs cut CVS Health from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on CVS Health from $101.00 to $86.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 30th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $58.00 target price on shares of CVS Health in a report on Wednesday, June 12th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $75.05.

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.