Bayforest Capital Ltd Makes New $331,000 Investment in CVS Health Corporation $CVS

Key Points

• Bayforest Capital Ltd has made a new investment of approximately $331,000 in CVS Health Corporation by acquiring 4,881 shares during the first quarter.
• CVS Health recently reported better-than-expected earnings, with $1.81 EPS for the quarter, exceeding analysts' estimates by $0.35, and a revenue of $98.92 billion.
• The consensus rating for CVS Health is a "Moderate Buy" with a target price of $77.89, following several analysts upgrading the stock's status, including a move from "neutral" to "outperform" by Robert W. Baird.

Bayforest Capital Ltd bought a new position in CVS Health Corporation (NYSE:CVS - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 4,881 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock, valued at approximately $331,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of CVS. Bell Investment Advisors Inc raised its holdings in CVS Health by 119.8% in the first quarter. Bell Investment Advisors Inc now owns 455 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 248 shares during the period. McIlrath & Eck LLC raised its holdings in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 174 shares during the period. Saudi Central Bank acquired a new stake in shares of CVS Health during the first quarter worth $34,000. Costello Asset Management INC raised its holdings in shares of CVS Health by 281.3% during the first quarter. Costello Asset Management INC now owns 572 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 422 shares during the period. Finally, Stone House Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of CVS Health during the first quarter worth $39,000. 80.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of CVS Health from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $71.00 to $82.00 in a report on Thursday, August 14th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an "overweight" rating and set a $78.00 price objective on shares of CVS Health in a report on Tuesday, August 26th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of CVS Health from $74.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, June 30th. Zacks Research lowered shares of CVS Health from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Baird R W raised shares of CVS Health from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 14th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have assigned a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, CVS Health has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $77.89.

CVS Health Stock Performance

Shares of CVS opened at $73.93 on Thursday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $66.82 and a 200-day moving average of $66.14. CVS Health Corporation has a one year low of $43.56 and a one year high of $74.53. The company has a market cap of $93.76 billion, a PE ratio of 20.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.62.

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

CVS Health Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 22nd were given a $0.665 dividend. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, July 22nd. CVS Health's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 74.30%.

Insider Activity at CVS Health

In related news, Director Anne A. Finucane sold 7,500 shares of CVS Health stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.02, for a total transaction of $532,650.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 22,156 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,573,519.12. The trade was a 25.29% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.22% of the company's stock.

CVS Health 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.

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