Russell Investments Group Ltd. Acquires 1,217,730 Shares of CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS)

Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its holdings in CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) by 62.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,173,780 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,217,730 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned about 0.25% of CVS Health worth $142,464,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. EagleClaw Capital Managment LLC boosted its stake in CVS Health by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. EagleClaw Capital Managment LLC now owns 6,135 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $275,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of CVS Health by 4.8% during the fourth quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 4,457 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $200,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares in the last quarter. Angeles Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in CVS Health by 3.7% in the fourth quarter. Angeles Investment Advisors LLC now owns 5,706 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $256,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares during the last quarter. Rogco LP boosted its holdings in shares of CVS Health by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Rogco LP now owns 6,752 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $303,000 after buying an additional 210 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cozad Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in CVS Health by 3.7% in the fourth quarter. Cozad Asset Management Inc. now owns 6,532 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $293,000 after purchasing an additional 233 shares during the last quarter. 80.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

CVS Health Trading Down 5.9 %

CVS Health stock opened at $63.54 on Friday. CVS Health Co. has a one year low of $43.56 and a one year high of $75.12. The business’s fifty day moving average is $63.47 and its 200 day moving average is $58.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $80.11 billion, a PE ratio of 17.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.54.

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

CVS Health Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 22nd will be paid a dividend of $0.665 per share. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.19%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 22nd. CVS Health’s dividend payout ratio is presently 72.68%.

Insider Transactions at CVS Health

In other news, Director Michael F. Mahoney bought 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was bought at an average price of $66.70 per share, with a total value of $2,001,000.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 39,356 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,625,045.20. This represents a 320.65 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, SVP James David Clark sold 7,513 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.35, for a total value of $498,487.55. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 8,394 shares in the company, valued at approximately $556,941.90. This represents a 47.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on CVS Health from $80.00 to $81.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of CVS Health from $62.00 to $59.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Argus set a $77.00 target price on CVS Health in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded shares of CVS Health from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their price objective on CVS Health from $60.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, CVS Health presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $70.39.

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.