CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) Given New $77.00 Price Target at Bank of America

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) had its price target trimmed by Bank of America from $95.00 to $77.00 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a buy rating on the pharmacy operator’s stock.

CVS has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Cantor Fitzgerald lowered shares of CVS Health from an overweight rating to a neutral rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $87.00 to $58.00 in a research report on Wednesday. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of CVS Health from $78.00 to $63.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of CVS Health from $93.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Friday, March 15th. UBS Group lowered shares of CVS Health from a buy rating to a neutral rating and decreased their price target for the company from $85.00 to $60.00 in a report on Thursday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on CVS Health from $86.00 to $84.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $80.35.

CVS Health Price Performance

Shares of CVS traded up $0.75 on Thursday, reaching $55.90. The stock had a trading volume of 23,946,075 shares, compared to its average volume of 12,498,538. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $72.77 and a 200 day moving average of $73.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.18 billion, a PE ratio of 9.82, a PEG ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 0.56. CVS Health has a twelve month low of $53.70 and a twelve month high of $83.25. The company has a quick ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The pharmacy operator reported $1.31 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.69 by ($0.38). CVS Health had a net margin of 2.03% and a return on equity of 13.53%. The company had revenue of $88.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $89.33 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.20 EPS. CVS Health’s quarterly revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that CVS Health will post 7.03 EPS for the current year.

CVS Health Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 22nd were issued a dividend of $0.665 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 19th. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.76%. CVS Health’s dividend payout ratio is presently 46.75%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Prem S. Shah sold 29,473 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.95, for a total transaction of $2,267,947.35. Following the transaction, 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 filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Prem S. Shah sold 29,473 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.95, for a total transaction of $2,267,947.35. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 39,765 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,059,916.75. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Edward J. Ludwig purchased 1,000 shares of CVS Health stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 2nd. The stock was acquired at an average price of $53.88 per share, for a total transaction of $53,880.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 21,630 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,165,424.40. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CVS Health

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Mission Wealth Management LP increased its holdings in shares of CVS Health by 4.3% during the third quarter. Mission Wealth Management LP now owns 5,081 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $355,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares during the period. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. boosted its holdings in shares of CVS Health by 6.2% in the third quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. now owns 65,885 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $4,600,000 after acquiring an additional 3,874 shares in the last quarter. Stratos Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of CVS Health by 82.5% during the third quarter. Stratos Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,614 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $462,000 after acquiring an additional 2,990 shares during the period. NorthRock Partners LLC lifted its position in CVS Health by 24.0% in the third quarter. NorthRock Partners LLC now owns 8,307 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $580,000 after purchasing an additional 1,606 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in shares of CVS Health by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 10,678,078 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $745,543,000 after purchasing an additional 266,650 shares during the period. 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.