CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the fifteen analysts that are covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and twelve have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $89.44.

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. SVB Leerink assumed coverage on shares of CVS Health in a research note on Monday, February 26th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $88.00 target price on the stock. Leerink Partnrs reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of CVS Health in a research report on Monday, February 26th. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on CVS Health from $93.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 15th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $87.00 price target on shares of CVS Health in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Barclays began coverage on CVS Health in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $78.00 price target on the stock.

Insider Transactions at CVS Health

In other CVS Health news, EVP Prem S. Shah sold 29,473 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.95, for a total value of $2,267,947.35. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 39,765 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,059,916.75. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CVS Health

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in CVS. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. grew its position in shares of CVS Health by 4.9% in the 4th quarter. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. now owns 2,859 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $226,000 after buying an additional 133 shares during the last quarter. Apella Capital LLC grew its holdings in CVS Health by 4.2% in the fourth quarter. Apella Capital LLC now owns 3,378 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $272,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. Prairie Sky Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in CVS Health by 4.1% in the fourth quarter. Prairie Sky Financial Group LLC now owns 3,612 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $285,000 after purchasing an additional 141 shares during the last quarter. WealthShield Partners LLC grew its holdings in CVS Health by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. WealthShield Partners LLC now owns 4,498 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $355,000 after purchasing an additional 141 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sugarloaf Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in CVS Health by 9.5% during the 4th quarter. Sugarloaf Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,639 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $129,000 after buying an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.66% of the company’s stock.

CVS Health Price Performance

Shares of CVS Health stock opened at $68.50 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $86.34 billion, a PE ratio of 10.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 0.52. CVS Health has a 12-month low of $64.41 and a 12-month high of $83.25. The company has a quick ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $74.97 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $73.76.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 7th. The pharmacy operator reported $2.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.01 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $93.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $90.58 billion. CVS Health had a return on equity of 15.25% and a net margin of 2.33%. CVS Health’s quarterly revenue was up 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.99 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that CVS Health will post 8.32 EPS for the current year.

CVS Health Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 22nd will be paid a $0.665 dividend. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 19th. CVS Health’s payout ratio is 41.18%.

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.