CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 18,500,000 shares, a growth of 6.2% from the August 15th total of 17,420,000 shares. Approximately 1.5% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 9,210,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.0 days.

CVS Health Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE:CVS traded down $0.52 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $57.85. 6,170,865 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 10,992,142. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $58.31 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $62.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a current ratio of 0.86. CVS Health has a 52-week low of $52.77 and a 52-week high of $83.25. The company has a market capitalization of $72.62 billion, a PE ratio of 10.16, a P/E/G ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 0.53.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The pharmacy operator reported $1.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.73 by $0.10. CVS Health had a return on equity of 12.72% and a net margin of 1.98%. The business had revenue of $91.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $91.41 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.21 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that CVS Health will post 6.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CVS Health Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 22nd were issued a dividend of $0.665 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, July 22nd. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.60%. CVS Health’s dividend payout ratio is currently 46.75%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on CVS shares. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on CVS Health from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 12th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $62.00 target price on shares of CVS Health in a research note on Monday. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on shares of CVS Health from $65.00 to $62.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of CVS Health from $101.00 to $86.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $68.00 target price on shares of CVS Health in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $72.10.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CVS Health

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. raised its holdings in CVS Health by 82.5% during the second quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 4,096 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $242,000 after buying an additional 1,852 shares in the last quarter. Prio Wealth Limited Partnership raised its stake in shares of CVS Health by 1.1% in the 2nd quarter. Prio Wealth Limited Partnership now owns 57,413 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $3,391,000 after acquiring an additional 600 shares in the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in CVS Health in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $8,005,000. Brown Financial Advisors bought a new stake in CVS Health during the second quarter worth approximately $684,000. Finally, Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new position in shares of CVS Health in the second quarter valued at approximately $63,000. 80.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.