Mizuho Securities USA LLC Trims Position in CVS Health Corporation (NYSE:CVS)

Key Points

• Mizuho Securities USA LLC has reduced its holdings in CVS Health Corporation by 15.4%, now owning a total of 100,952 shares valued at approximately $6.84 million.
• CVS Health Corporation reported an earnings per share (EPS) of $1.81, surpassing estimates, along with a revenue of $98.92 billion for the most recent quarter, marking an 8.4% increase year-over-year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.665 per share, representing a 4.1% dividend yield and a payout ratio of 74.30%.

Mizuho Securities USA LLC decreased its stake in shares of CVS Health Corporation (NYSE:CVS - Free Report) by 15.4% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 100,952 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock after selling 18,317 shares during the period. Mizuho Securities USA LLC's holdings in CVS Health were worth $6,839,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CVS. McIlrath & Eck LLC lifted its position in CVS Health by 32.6% during the fourth quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 707 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares during the period. Costello Asset Management INC lifted its position in CVS Health by 281.3% during the first quarter. Costello Asset Management INC now owns 572 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 422 shares during the period. Park Square Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in CVS Health during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $43,000. GW&K Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in 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. Finally, Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL increased its holdings in CVS Health by 77.2% during the fourth quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL now owns 1,024 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 446 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.66% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on CVS shares. Barclays upped their target price on shares of CVS Health from $79.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Wall Street Zen raised shares of CVS Health from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of CVS Health from $82.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of CVS Health from $71.00 to $67.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Bernstein Bank reduced their price objective on shares of CVS Health from $78.00 to $72.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $75.11.

CVS Health Price Performance

CVS stock traded down $0.64 during trading on Monday, hitting $64.91. 5,554,636 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 9,220,690. CVS Health Corporation has a 52 week low of $43.56 and a 52 week high of $72.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 0.80. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $64.71 and a 200 day simple moving average of $64.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $82.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.13, a P/E/G ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 0.58.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The pharmacy operator reported $1.81 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.46 by $0.35. CVS Health had a net margin of 1.17% and a return on equity of 10.51%. The business had revenue of $98.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $94.87 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.83 earnings per share. CVS Health's quarterly revenue was up 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect 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. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 22nd were issued a $0.665 dividend. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.1%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, July 22nd. CVS Health's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 74.30%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Guy P. Sansone bought 1,570 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 5th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $63.70 per share, for a total transaction of $100,009.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 12,007 shares of the company's stock, valued at $764,845.90. The trade was a 15.04% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.22% of the company's stock.

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.