Rafferty Asset Management LLC Has $7.91 Million Stock Position in CVS Health Corporation $CVS

Key Points

• Rafferty Asset Management LLC has reduced its holdings in CVS Health Corporation by 18.2%, selling 25,978 shares for a total stake now worth approximately $7.9 million.
• Several institutional investors have increased their stakes in CVS Health, with a total of 80.66% of the stock now owned by institutional shareholders.
• CVS Health reported better-than-expected earnings for the last quarter, with an EPS of $1.81, surpassing the consensus estimate, and announced a quarterly dividend with a yield of 3.7%.

Rafferty Asset Management LLC decreased its position in CVS Health Corporation (NYSE:CVS - Free Report) by 18.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 116,739 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock after selling 25,978 shares during the quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC's holdings in CVS Health were worth $7,909,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of CVS Health by 87.5% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 9,927,650 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock valued at $672,598,000 after acquiring an additional 4,632,530 shares in the last quarter. Dodge & Cox grew its holdings in shares of CVS Health by 4.8% in the 1st quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 73,459,122 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock valued at $4,976,856,000 after acquiring an additional 3,353,223 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new position in shares of CVS Health in the 1st quarter valued at about $204,421,000. Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd. Can bought a new position in shares of CVS Health in the 4th quarter valued at about $121,742,000. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its holdings in shares of CVS Health by 310.8% in the 1st quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 3,523,824 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock valued at $238,739,000 after acquiring an additional 2,666,029 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.66% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at CVS Health

In related news, Director Anne A. Finucane sold 7,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.02, for a total value of $532,650.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 22,156 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,573,519.12. The trade was a 25.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Guy P. Sansone purchased 1,570 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 5th. The stock was bought 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 of the company's stock, valued at $764,845.90. This trade represents a 15.04% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 1.22% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on CVS. Truist Financial raised their price objective on CVS Health from $82.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of CVS Health in a report on Monday, August 4th. Barclays lifted their price target on CVS Health from $79.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Robert W. Baird upgraded CVS Health from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $71.00 to $82.00 in a report on Thursday, August 14th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $78.00 price target on shares of CVS Health in a report on Tuesday, August 26th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $77.56.

CVS Health Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:CVS traded up $1.03 during trading on Monday, reaching $73.17. 6,391,563 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,107,539. CVS Health Corporation has a 12 month low of $43.56 and a 12 month high of $73.23. The firm has a market cap of $92.80 billion, a PE ratio of 20.44, a PEG ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 0.62. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $66.00 and a 200-day moving average price of $65.72. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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. 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 analysts' expectations of $94.87 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.83 earnings per share. The business'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. Research analysts expect that CVS Health Corporation will post 5.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CVS Health Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 22nd were paid a $0.665 dividend. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.6%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, July 22nd. CVS Health's payout ratio is 74.30%.

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.