BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. Reduces Position in CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS)

BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. trimmed its holdings in CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) by 62.5% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 217,353 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock after selling 361,764 shares during the quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A.’s holdings in CVS Health were worth $13,667,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in CVS. Kestra Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in CVS Health by 6.6% during the first quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC now owns 174,398 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $13,910,000 after buying an additional 10,871 shares during the last quarter. Ascent Group LLC boosted its position in shares of CVS Health by 503.7% during the 1st quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 17,610 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $1,405,000 after acquiring an additional 14,693 shares during the last quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI purchased a new stake in shares of CVS Health in the first quarter valued at about $2,114,000. Captrust Financial Advisors increased its position in CVS Health by 4.9% during the first quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 1,892,879 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $150,976,000 after purchasing an additional 88,113 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Waverly Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in CVS Health by 25.0% in the 1st quarter. Waverly Advisors LLC now owns 14,057 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $1,121,000 after purchasing an additional 2,815 shares during the last quarter. 80.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

CVS Health Trading Up 1.6 %

CVS opened at $58.01 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.59. The stock has a market capitalization of $73.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.72, a PEG ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 0.55. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $59.21 and a 200 day moving average price of $58.61. CVS Health Co. has a 12 month low of $52.71 and a 12 month high of $83.25.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The pharmacy operator reported $1.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08 by $0.01. CVS Health had a net margin of 1.36% and a return on equity of 10.72%. The firm had revenue of $95.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $92.72 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.21 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that CVS Health Co. will post 5.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CVS Health Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 1st. Investors of record on Monday, October 21st were paid a dividend of $0.665 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, October 21st. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.59%. CVS Health’s payout ratio is currently 67.51%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CVS has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $62.00 price target on shares of CVS Health in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Barclays decreased their price target on CVS Health from $75.00 to $71.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on CVS Health from $68.00 to $58.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 15th. StockNews.com cut shares of CVS Health from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of CVS Health from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $72.28.

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.