Swedbank AB Raises Stock Holdings in CVS Health Corporation $CVS

Key Points

• Swedbank AB has increased its stake in CVS Health Corporation by 1.0%, acquiring an additional 14,454 shares, bringing its total ownership to 1,420,266 shares valued at approximately $96.2 million.
• CVS Health has encountered mixed analyst ratings, with Bernstein Bank reducing its target price from $78 to $72, while Jefferies Financial Group raised its target from $74 to $80, maintaining a "buy" rating.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.665 per share, providing an annualized yield of 3.5%, with a payout ratio of 74.3%.

Swedbank AB increased its position in CVS Health Corporation (NYSE:CVS - Free Report) by 1.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,420,266 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock after purchasing an additional 14,454 shares during the period. Swedbank AB owned 0.11% of CVS Health worth $96,223,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of CVS. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of CVS Health by 87.5% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 9,927,650 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $672,598,000 after acquiring an additional 4,632,530 shares during the last quarter. Dodge & Cox grew its stake in shares of CVS Health by 4.8% in the first quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 73,459,122 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $4,976,856,000 after acquiring an additional 3,353,223 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in shares of CVS Health in the first quarter worth $204,421,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its stake in shares of CVS Health by 310.8% in the first quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 3,523,824 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $238,739,000 after acquiring an additional 2,666,029 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in shares of CVS Health by 13.2% in the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 20,413,853 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $1,383,039,000 after acquiring an additional 2,375,764 shares during the last quarter. 80.66% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CVS has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Bernstein Bank cut their target price on CVS Health from $78.00 to $72.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Wall Street Zen cut CVS Health from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on CVS Health from $74.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, June 30th. Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of CVS Health in a report on Monday, August 4th. Finally, Baird R W raised CVS Health from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, August 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, CVS Health has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $77.89.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other CVS Health news, Director Anne A. Finucane sold 7,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.02, for a total value of $532,650.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 22,156 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,573,519.12. This trade represents a 25.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.22% of the company's stock.

CVS Health Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of NYSE:CVS opened at $75.00 on Friday. CVS Health Corporation has a 1 year low of $43.56 and a 1 year high of $75.55. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $67.11 and its 200-day moving average price is $66.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.62. The company has a market cap of $95.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.95, a PEG ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 0.62.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The pharmacy operator reported $1.81 earnings per share (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 business had revenue of $98.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $94.87 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.83 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. CVS Health has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.300-6.400 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that CVS Health Corporation will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current year.

CVS Health Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 22nd were given a dividend of $0.665 per share. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, July 22nd. CVS Health's payout ratio is 74.30%.

CVS Health Company 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.

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