Rafferty Asset Management LLC Purchases 15,126 Shares of CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS)

Rafferty Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS - Free Report) by 11.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 142,717 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock after acquiring an additional 15,126 shares during the period. Rafferty Asset Management LLC's holdings in CVS Health were worth $6,407,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of CVS. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC increased its holdings in shares of CVS Health by 17.3% during the 4th quarter. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC now owns 1,282 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $56,000 after purchasing an additional 189 shares during the period. EagleClaw Capital Managment LLC grew its position in CVS Health by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. EagleClaw Capital Managment LLC now owns 6,135 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $275,000 after buying an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC increased its stake in CVS Health by 4.8% during the fourth quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 4,457 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock valued at $200,000 after acquiring an additional 204 shares during the period. Angeles Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in CVS Health by 3.7% in the 4th quarter. Angeles Investment Advisors LLC now owns 5,706 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock valued at $256,000 after acquiring an additional 204 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rogco LP lifted its position in shares of CVS Health by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Rogco LP now owns 6,752 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $303,000 after acquiring an additional 210 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.66% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Cowen restated a "buy" rating on shares of CVS Health in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Cantor Fitzgerald raised shares of CVS Health from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Leerink Partnrs upgraded shares of CVS Health from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Mizuho lifted their target price on shares of CVS Health from $70.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of CVS Health from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $74.94.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP James David Clark sold 7,513 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.35, for a total value of $498,487.55. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 8,394 shares in the company, valued at $556,941.90. The trade was a 47.23% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 1.22% of the stock is owned by insiders.

CVS Health Price Performance

CVS traded down $0.53 during trading on Friday, hitting $59.69. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,877,107 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,334,320. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $75.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.60. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $66.28 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $59.37. CVS Health Co. has a 12 month low of $43.56 and a 12 month high of $72.51.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The pharmacy operator reported $2.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.62 by $0.63. The business had revenue of $94.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $93.07 billion. CVS Health had a return on equity of 9.11% and a net margin of 1.24%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.31 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that CVS Health Co. will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CVS Health Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 22nd were given a dividend of $0.665 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 22nd. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.46%. CVS Health's payout ratio is 63.48%.

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.