Synovus Financial Corp Sells 9,371 Shares of CVS Health Corporation $CVS

Key Points

• Synovus Financial Corp reduced its holdings in CVS Health by 11.7%, now owning 70,580 shares valued at approximately $4.78 million after selling 9,371 shares in the first quarter.
• Multiple analysts upgraded CVS Health, with price targets raised by firms like Royal Bank of Canada and Wells Fargo, reflecting a consensus rating of "Buy" and a price target of $76.67.
• CVS Health reported strong quarterly earnings, with an EPS of $1.81 and revenue of $98.92 billion, surpassing analyst expectations and showing an 8.4% increase from the previous year.

Synovus Financial Corp lowered its position in shares of CVS Health Corporation (NYSE:CVS - Free Report) by 11.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 70,580 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock after selling 9,371 shares during the quarter. Synovus Financial Corp's holdings in CVS Health were worth $4,782,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. McIlrath & Eck LLC raised its position 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 purchasing an additional 174 shares during the last quarter. Costello Asset Management INC increased its holdings in CVS Health by 281.3% in the 1st quarter. Costello Asset Management INC now owns 572 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 422 shares in the last quarter. Stone House Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in CVS Health in the 1st quarter worth about $39,000. Park Square Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in CVS Health in the 4th quarter worth about $43,000. Finally, GW&K Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in CVS Health by 39.4% in the 1st quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC now owns 637 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.66% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other CVS Health news, Director Guy P. Sansone purchased 1,570 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 5th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $63.70 per share, for a total transaction of $100,009.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 12,007 shares of the company's stock, 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 through this link. 1.22% of the stock is owned by insiders.

CVS Health Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:CVS traded up $0.39 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $71.94. 3,586,239 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 8,055,836. The company's 50 day moving average price is $65.76 and its 200-day moving average price is $65.46. The firm has a market cap of $91.24 billion, a PE 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 Corporation has a 52 week low of $43.56 and a 52 week high of $72.51.

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

CVS Health Announces Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Barclays lifted their price objective on CVS Health from $79.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. 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. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on shares of CVS Health from $74.00 to $81.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $84.00 price target (up previously from $76.00) on shares of CVS Health in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of CVS Health from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have given a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, CVS Health presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $77.56.

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.