CVS Health Corporation (NYSE:CVS) Given Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Shares of CVS Health Corporation (NYSE:CVS - Get Free Report) have been given a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" by the twenty ratings firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, seventeen have given a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $75.38.

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on CVS shares. Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of CVS Health in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Cowen reissued a "buy" rating on shares of CVS Health in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on shares of CVS Health from $72.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Barclays set a $79.00 price target on shares of CVS Health and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, June 2nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of CVS Health from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Guy P. Sansone purchased 1,570 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 5th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $63.70 per share, for a total transaction of $100,009.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 12,007 shares in the company, valued at $764,845.90. The trade was a 15.04% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 1.22% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in CVS. Essex Financial Services Inc. grew its position in CVS Health by 0.8% during the first quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc. now owns 20,705 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $1,403,000 after buying an additional 166 shares during the period. Williams Financial LLC grew its position in CVS Health by 2.5% during the second quarter. Williams Financial LLC now owns 6,923 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $478,000 after buying an additional 167 shares during the period. Hemington Wealth Management grew its position in CVS Health by 33.7% during the first quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 682 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 172 shares during the period. McIlrath & Eck LLC grew its position in CVS Health by 32.6% during the fourth quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 707 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 174 shares during the period. Finally, Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. grew its position in CVS Health by 1.0% during the first quarter. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. now owns 17,114 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $1,159,000 after buying an additional 174 shares during the period. 80.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

CVS Health Trading Down 1.4%

CVS opened at $64.73 on Friday. CVS Health has a one year low of $43.56 and a one year high of $72.51. The company has a market cap of $81.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.45, a PEG ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a current ratio of 0.82. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $65.05 and its 200-day simple moving average is $62.35.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The pharmacy operator reported $2.25 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.62 by $0.63. CVS Health had a return on equity of 10.59% and a net margin of 1.39%. The business had revenue of $94.59 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $93.07 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.31 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that CVS Health will post 5.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CVS Health Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 22nd will be paid a dividend of $0.665 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 22nd. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.11%. CVS Health's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 63.48%.

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.

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