Axa S.A. Increases Stock Holdings in CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS)

AXA S.A. grew its holdings in shares of CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS - Free Report) by 46.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,070,959 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock after buying an additional 337,738 shares during the period. AXA S.A. owned approximately 0.09% of CVS Health worth $48,075,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of CVS. Ridgewood Investments LLC grew its holdings in CVS Health by 255.7% in the fourth quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC now owns 626 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 450 shares during the period. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of CVS Health in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. bought a new stake in CVS Health in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Financial Perspectives Inc raised its stake in CVS Health by 137.5% during the 4th quarter. Financial Perspectives Inc now owns 805 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 466 shares during the period. Finally, Compass Planning Associates Inc bought a new position in CVS Health in the fourth quarter worth approximately $37,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.66% of the company's stock.

CVS Health Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:CVS traded up $0.56 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $66.79. The company had a trading volume of 9,279,324 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,458,225. CVS Health Co. has a 52-week low of $43.56 and a 52-week high of $72.51. The company's 50 day moving average price is $66.82 and its 200 day moving average price is $58.85. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. The stock has a market cap of $84.21 billion, a P/E 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 released its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The pharmacy operator reported $2.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.62 by $0.63. The firm had revenue of $94.59 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $93.07 billion. CVS Health had a net margin of 1.24% and a return on equity of 9.11%. The company's revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.31 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that CVS Health Co. will post 5.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CVS Health Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 22nd were paid a $0.665 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 22nd. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.98%. CVS Health's payout ratio is presently 63.48%.

Insider Transactions at CVS Health

In other CVS Health news, Director Michael F. Mahoney acquired 30,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $66.70 per share, with a total value of $2,001,000.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 39,356 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,625,045.20. This represents a 320.65 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP James David Clark sold 7,513 shares of the business's stock in a transaction 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 sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 8,394 shares in the company, valued at $556,941.90. The trade was a 47.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.22% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on CVS. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $84.00 target price (up from $76.00) on shares of CVS Health in a report on Tuesday. Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of CVS Health in a research note on Monday. Cantor Fitzgerald raised shares of CVS Health from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of CVS Health from $67.00 to $71.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Leerink Partnrs raised CVS Health from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $74.81.

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.