Eastern Bank Trims Stock Position in CVS Health Corporation (NYSE:CVS)

Key Points

• Eastern Bank reduced its holdings in CVS Health by 45.9% in the first quarter, now owning shares worth $767,000.
• CVS Health recently reported $2.25 EPS for the quarter, exceeding estimates, and its revenue also grew by 7.0% year-over-year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.665 per share, with a yield of 4.26%, to be paid on August 1st.

Eastern Bank reduced its stake in shares of CVS Health Corporation (NYSE:CVS - Free Report) by 45.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 11,316 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock after selling 9,594 shares during the quarter. Eastern Bank's holdings in CVS Health were worth $767,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. GW&K Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of CVS Health by 39.4% during the first quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC now owns 637 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 180 shares during the last quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC grew 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 worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares in the last quarter. Sierra Ocean LLC grew its stake in CVS Health by 584.8% in the first quarter. Sierra Ocean LLC now owns 719 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 614 shares in the last quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in CVS Health by 63.9% in the first quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. now owns 741 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 289 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dunhill Financial LLC grew its stake in CVS Health by 147.2% in the first quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 749 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 446 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.66% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CVS has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on CVS Health from $74.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, June 30th. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on CVS Health from $51.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on CVS Health from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday. Bernstein Bank lowered their target price on CVS Health from $78.00 to $72.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded CVS Health from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, CVS Health has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $75.11.

Insider Transactions at CVS Health

In related news, Director Guy P. Sansone acquired 1,570 shares of CVS Health stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 5th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $63.70 per share, for a total transaction of $100,009.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 12,007 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $764,845.90. This represents a 15.04% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 1.22% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

CVS Health Stock Performance

CVS stock traded up $0.42 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $62.52. The stock had a trading volume of 11,376,286 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,510,677. The stock has a market cap of $79.09 billion, a PE ratio of 17.46, a P/E/G ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a current ratio of 0.80. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $64.56 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $63.85. 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 issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The pharmacy operator reported $1.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.46 by $0.35. The company had revenue of $98.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $94.87 billion. CVS Health had a return on equity of 10.51% and a net margin of 1.17%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.83 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that CVS Health Corporation will post 5.89 EPS for the current year.

CVS Health Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 22nd will be paid a $0.665 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 22nd. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.3%. CVS Health's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 74.30%.

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.