Brevan Howard Capital Management LP bought a new stake in CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 25,261 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock, valued at approximately $1,134,000.
Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Dodge & Cox raised its stake in shares of 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 in the last quarter. Capital World Investors raised its position in CVS Health by 26.6% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 61,039,777 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $2,739,927,000 after acquiring an additional 12,819,148 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in CVS Health by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 27,051,540 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock valued at $1,211,582,000 after acquiring an additional 689,867 shares during the period. Capital International Investors grew its stake in shares of CVS Health by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 26,666,401 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $1,196,989,000 after purchasing an additional 1,212,126 shares during the period. Finally, Pzena Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of CVS Health by 49.3% in the 4th quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 19,610,579 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock valued at $880,319,000 after purchasing 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 Stock Up 0.9 %
NYSE CVS opened at $66.79 on Thursday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $66.84 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $58.91. CVS Health Co. has a fifty-two week low of $43.56 and a fifty-two week high of $72.51. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. The stock has a market cap of $84.21 billion, a PE ratio of 18.25, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.60.
CVS Health (NYSE:CVS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 firm had revenue of $94.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $93.07 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.31 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that CVS Health Co. will post 5.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.
CVS Health Announces Dividend
The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 22nd were paid a dividend of $0.665 per share. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.98%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 22nd. CVS Health's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 63.48%.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
Several brokerages have weighed in on CVS. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of CVS Health from $67.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on CVS Health from $74.00 to $81.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday. Leerink Partnrs raised CVS Health from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Mizuho boosted their price objective on shares of CVS Health from $70.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Argus set a $77.00 price target on shares of CVS Health in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $74.81.
Check Out Our Latest Report on CVS Health
Insider Transactions at CVS Health
In related news, SVP James David Clark sold 7,513 shares of CVS Health stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.35, for a total value of $498,487.55. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 8,394 shares in the company, valued at approximately $556,941.90. This trade represents a 47.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Michael F. Mahoney acquired 30,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $66.70 per share, for a total transaction of $2,001,000.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 39,356 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,625,045.20. This represents a 320.65 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.22% of the company's stock.
About CVS Health
(
Free Report)
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.
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