Ariel Investments LLC Buys 311,819 Shares of CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS)

Ariel Investments LLC raised its holdings in shares of CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS - Free Report) by 50.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 928,626 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock after acquiring an additional 311,819 shares during the period. Ariel Investments LLC owned approximately 0.07% of CVS Health worth $41,686,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of CVS Health in the fourth quarter worth $839,574,000. Capital World Investors raised its position in shares of CVS Health by 26.6% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 61,039,777 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock valued at $2,739,927,000 after acquiring an additional 12,819,148 shares during the last quarter. Davis Selected Advisers increased its stake in CVS Health by 2,998.1% in the fourth quarter. Davis Selected Advisers now owns 11,385,950 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock valued at $511,115,000 after purchasing an additional 11,018,438 shares in the last quarter. Dodge & Cox raised its holdings in CVS Health by 11.2% during the 4th quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 70,105,899 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $3,147,054,000 after buying an additional 7,075,209 shares during the period. Finally, Pzena Investment Management LLC lifted its position in CVS Health by 49.3% during the 4th quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 19,610,579 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $880,319,000 after buying an additional 6,475,271 shares in the last quarter. 80.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

CVS Health Price Performance

Shares of CVS Health stock traded down $0.79 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $66.32. The company's stock had a trading volume of 6,984,481 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,466,938. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $66.79 and a 200-day moving average price of $58.81. The company has a market capitalization of $83.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. CVS Health Co. has a 12-month low of $43.56 and a 12-month high of $72.51.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The pharmacy operator reported $2.25 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.62 by $0.63. CVS Health had a net margin of 1.24% and a return on equity of 9.11%. The business had revenue of $94.59 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $93.07 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.31 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that CVS Health Co. will post 5.89 EPS for the current year.

CVS Health Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 22nd were given a dividend of $0.665 per share. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.01%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 22nd. CVS Health's payout ratio is currently 63.48%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CVS has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating on shares of CVS Health in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on CVS Health from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. StockNews.com upgraded CVS Health from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of CVS Health from $67.00 to $71.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of CVS Health from $74.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $74.81.

Insider Buying and Selling at CVS Health

In other news, Director Michael F. Mahoney bought 30,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $66.70 per share, for a total transaction of $2,001,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP James David Clark sold 7,513 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.35, for a total transaction of $498,487.55. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 8,394 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $556,941.90. This trade represents a 47.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.22% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.