West Family Investments Inc. Reduces Holdings in CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS)

West Family Investments Inc. lessened its position in shares of CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) by 9.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 22,712 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock after selling 2,280 shares during the period. West Family Investments Inc.’s holdings in CVS Health were worth $1,020,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of CVS Health by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 56,527,909 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $3,554,475,000 after buying an additional 1,989,066 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in CVS Health by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 26,361,673 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $1,651,997,000 after purchasing an additional 461,569 shares in the last quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in CVS Health by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 13,135,308 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $825,948,000 after purchasing an additional 198,920 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in CVS Health by 5.8% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 12,918,949 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $579,932,000 after purchasing an additional 710,281 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in CVS Health by 34.8% during the 3rd quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 11,897,034 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $748,085,000 after purchasing an additional 3,071,613 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.66% of the company’s stock.

CVS Health Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE CVS opened at $65.17 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $82.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.80, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. CVS Health Co. has a 1-year low of $43.56 and a 1-year high of $80.75. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $55.98 and its 200 day moving average is $56.69.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The pharmacy operator reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.89 by $0.30. CVS Health had a return on equity of 9.11% and a net margin of 1.24%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that CVS Health Co. will post 5.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CVS Health Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 3rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 23rd were paid a $0.665 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, January 23rd. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.08%. CVS Health’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 72.68%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Michael F. Mahoney purchased 30,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $66.70 per share, with a total value of $2,001,000.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 39,356 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,625,045.20. This trade represents a 320.65 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. Argus set a $77.00 price objective on CVS Health in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on CVS Health from $68.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. TD Cowen raised their price target on CVS Health from $73.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 25th. Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded CVS Health from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Piper Sandler dropped their price target on CVS Health from $72.00 to $64.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 25th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, CVS Health has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $69.83.

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.