Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC Sells 5,162,835 Shares of CVS Health Corporation $CVS

Key Points

• Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC reduced its holdings in CVS Health by 39.9%, selling over 5 million shares during the first quarter, now holding 7.8 million shares valued at approximately $527 million.
• Insider Guy P. Sansone purchased 1,570 shares of CVS Health, increasing his ownership by 15.04% and bringing his total shares to over 12,000.
• CVS Health reported earnings of $1.81 per share for the latest quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations, with revenues reaching $98.92 billion, a year-over-year increase of 8.4%.

Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC reduced its stake in CVS Health Corporation (NYSE:CVS - Free Report) by 39.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 7,777,152 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock after selling 5,162,835 shares during the quarter. CVS Health accounts for approximately 1.8% of Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest holding. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC owned 0.61% of CVS Health worth $526,902,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Essex Financial Services Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of CVS Health by 0.8% in the 1st 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 last quarter. Hemington Wealth Management boosted its holdings in shares of CVS Health by 33.7% in the 1st 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 last quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC boosted its holdings in shares of CVS Health by 32.6% in the 4th 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 last quarter. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. boosted its holdings in shares of CVS Health by 1.0% in the 1st 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 last quarter. Finally, Koshinski Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of CVS Health by 3.7% in the 1st quarter. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,930 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $334,000 after buying an additional 178 shares during the last quarter. 80.66% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

CVS Health Price Performance

Shares of CVS traded up $0.39 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $71.94. 3,586,186 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 9,739,502. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $65.66 and a 200-day moving average of $65.42. CVS Health Corporation has a one year low of $43.56 and a one year high of $72.51. The firm has a market cap of $91.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.09, a PEG ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 0.58. 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 issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The pharmacy operator reported $1.81 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.46 by $0.35. CVS Health had a return on equity of 10.51% and a net margin of 1.17%.The company had revenue of $98.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $94.87 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.83 earnings per share. CVS Health's 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, sell-side analysts predict that CVS Health Corporation will post 5.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CVS Health Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 22nd were paid a $0.665 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, July 22nd. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.7%. CVS Health's dividend payout ratio is currently 74.30%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on CVS shares. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $84.00 price target (up from $76.00) on shares of CVS Health in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Barclays boosted their price objective on CVS Health from $79.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Robert W. Baird upgraded CVS Health from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $71.00 to $82.00 in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on CVS Health from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Cowen restated a "buy" rating on shares of CVS Health in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have given a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $77.56.

Insider Transactions at CVS Health

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

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.