Acadian Asset Management LLC Acquires 103,281 Shares of CVS Health Corporation $CVS

Key Points

• Acadian Asset Management LLC significantly increased its stake in CVS Health by 888.7%, acquiring an additional 103,281 shares, bringing its total holdings to 114,903 shares valued at approximately $7.78 million.
• Wall Street analysts have shown optimism for CVS Health, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a price target of $77.89, while Barclays set a target price of $87.00.
• CVS Health reported a strong quarter with an earnings per share of $1.81, exceeding analyst expectations, and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.665, indicating a 3.5% yield.

Acadian Asset Management LLC raised its position in CVS Health Corporation (NYSE:CVS - Free Report) by 888.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 114,903 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock after purchasing an additional 103,281 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC's holdings in CVS Health were worth $7,783,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Essex Financial Services Inc. increased its stake in CVS Health by 0.8% in the first quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc. now owns 20,705 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock valued at $1,403,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. Hemington Wealth Management increased its stake in CVS Health by 33.7% in the first quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 682 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 172 shares in the last quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC increased its stake in CVS Health by 32.6% in the fourth quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 707 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. increased its stake in CVS Health by 1.0% in the first quarter. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. now owns 17,114 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock valued at $1,159,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Koshinski Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in CVS Health by 3.7% in the first quarter. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,930 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock valued at $334,000 after purchasing an additional 178 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.66% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on CVS shares. Barclays upped their target price on shares of CVS Health from $80.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, September 4th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of CVS Health from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $78.00 price objective on shares of CVS Health in a research report on Tuesday, August 26th. Bernstein Bank lowered their price objective on shares of CVS Health from $78.00 to $72.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of CVS Health from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, September 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $77.89.

CVS Health Stock Up 0.4%

CVS Health stock opened at $75.00 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $95.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 0.62. CVS Health Corporation has a 1-year low of $43.56 and a 1-year high of $75.55. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $67.11 and a 200 day simple moving average of $66.30. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The pharmacy operator reported $1.81 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.46 by $0.35. The business had revenue of $98.92 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $94.87 billion. CVS Health had a net margin of 1.17% and a return on equity of 10.51%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.83 earnings per share. CVS Health has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.300-6.400 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that CVS Health Corporation will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CVS Health Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 22nd were given a $0.665 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, July 22nd. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.5%. CVS Health's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 74.30%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Anne A. Finucane sold 7,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.02, for a total value of $532,650.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 22,156 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,573,519.12. This trade represents a 25.29% 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 hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.22% of the company's stock.

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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