Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC Sells 4,534 Shares of CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS)

Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC trimmed its stake in CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS - Free Report) by 12.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 30,777 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock after selling 4,534 shares during the period. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC's holdings in CVS Health were worth $1,382,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in CVS Health by 4.8% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,434,476 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $90,200,000 after buying an additional 66,244 shares in the last quarter. Hall Laurie J Trustee raised its stake in CVS Health by 25,484.4% during the 4th quarter. Hall Laurie J Trustee now owns 11,513 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $517,000 after acquiring an additional 11,468 shares during the period. B&D White Capital Company LLC purchased a new position in CVS Health during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $417,000. Watts Gwilliam & Co. LLC boosted its position in shares of CVS Health by 9.8% in the fourth quarter. Watts Gwilliam & Co. LLC now owns 7,302 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $334,000 after purchasing an additional 650 shares during the period. Finally, Seizert Capital Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of CVS Health by 22.8% in the fourth quarter. Seizert Capital Partners LLC now owns 569,527 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $25,566,000 after purchasing an additional 105,708 shares in the last quarter. 80.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently weighed in on CVS. Edward Jones raised shares of CVS Health from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded CVS Health from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of CVS Health in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on shares of CVS Health from $72.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of CVS Health from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, CVS Health has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $71.83.

CVS Health Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of CVS traded down $0.33 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $64.99. The stock had a trading volume of 2,197,707 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,126,555. The stock's 50 day moving average is $66.48 and its 200 day moving average is $58.77. The firm has a market cap of $81.94 billion, a PE ratio of 17.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.60. CVS Health Co. has a 1 year low of $43.56 and a 1 year high of $71.45.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The pharmacy operator reported $1.19 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.89 by $0.30. CVS Health had a net margin of 1.24% and a return on equity of 9.11%. As a group, analysts forecast that CVS Health Co. will post 5.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CVS Health Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.665 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 22nd. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.09%. CVS Health's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 72.68%.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP James David Clark sold 7,513 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.35, for a total value of $498,487.55. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 8,394 shares in the company, valued at approximately $556,941.90. The trade was a 47.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Michael F. Mahoney acquired 30,000 shares of CVS Health stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $66.70 per share, for a total transaction of $2,001,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 39,356 shares in the company, valued at $2,625,045.20. This trade represents a 320.65 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 1.22% of the company's stock.

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.