CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Barclays Analyst Says

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS - Get Free Report) had its price target upped by equities researchers at Barclays from $73.00 to $82.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an "overweight" rating on the pharmacy operator's stock. Barclays's target price indicates a potential upside of 23.65% from the company's previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently commented on the stock. Truist Financial lifted their target price on shares of CVS Health from $76.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Leerink Partnrs upgraded shares of CVS Health from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Argus set a $77.00 price objective on CVS Health in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Leerink Partners upgraded CVS Health from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their target price for the company from $55.00 to $75.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price target on CVS Health from $62.00 to $59.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Four 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.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $74.81.

CVS Health Stock Down 1.2 %

CVS stock traded down $0.79 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $66.32. The company's stock had a trading volume of 6,984,471 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,487,458. The company has a market cap of $83.61 billion, a PE ratio of 18.12, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.60. The firm's 50-day moving average is $66.79 and its 200-day moving average is $58.81. CVS Health has a 12 month low of $43.56 and a 12 month high of $72.51. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80.

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 the consensus estimate of $1.62 by $0.63. CVS Health had a return on equity of 9.11% and a net margin of 1.24%. The company had revenue of $94.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $93.07 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.31 earnings per share. CVS Health's revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that CVS Health will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other CVS Health news, Director Michael F. Mahoney acquired 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was acquired at an average price 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 $2,625,045.20. This trade represents a 320.65 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase 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 business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at approximately $556,941.90. This trade represents a 47.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.22% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of CVS Health

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. World Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in CVS Health by 280.7% in the third quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 27,543 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $1,732,000 after purchasing an additional 20,308 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in CVS Health during the 3rd quarter worth $2,071,000. Tidal Investments LLC raised its holdings in shares of CVS Health by 52.2% in the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 112,010 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock valued at $7,043,000 after acquiring an additional 38,408 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in CVS Health by 4.8% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,434,476 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $90,200,000 after acquiring an additional 66,244 shares during the period. Finally, Central Pacific Bank Trust Division increased its position in CVS Health by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division now owns 34,257 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock valued at $1,538,000 after purchasing an additional 989 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.66% of the company's stock.

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.