Lazard Asset Management LLC Raises Holdings in CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS)

Lazard Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS - Free Report) by 7.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,290,953 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock after purchasing an additional 293,406 shares during the quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC owned about 0.34% of CVS Health worth $192,617,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Whitebox Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of CVS Health during the fourth quarter worth $249,000. Hall Laurie J Trustee boosted its holdings in shares of 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 valued at $517,000 after purchasing an additional 11,468 shares during the last quarter. B&D White Capital Company LLC bought a new stake in shares of CVS Health in the fourth quarter worth about $417,000. Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd. Can purchased a new stake in shares of CVS Health in the fourth quarter worth about $121,742,000. Finally, Seizert Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in CVS Health by 22.8% during the fourth quarter. Seizert Capital Partners LLC now owns 569,527 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock valued at $25,566,000 after buying an additional 105,708 shares during the last quarter. 80.66% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com raised CVS Health from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. 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 research report on Friday, March 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of CVS Health from $80.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Truist Financial increased their price target on shares of CVS Health from $82.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Edward Jones raised CVS Health from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, CVS Health has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $74.94.

CVS Health Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of NYSE:CVS traded up $0.38 on Thursday, hitting $60.42. 11,209,003 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 11,447,893. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $66.71 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $59.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $76.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.60. CVS Health Co. has a 12 month low of $43.56 and a 12 month high of $72.51.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The pharmacy operator reported $2.25 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.62 by $0.63. The business had revenue of $94.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $93.07 billion. CVS Health had a net margin of 1.24% and a return on equity of 9.11%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.31 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that CVS Health Co. will post 5.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CVS Health Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 22nd were paid a $0.665 dividend. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.40%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 22nd. CVS Health's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 63.48%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Michael F. Mahoney purchased 30,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $66.70 per share, with a total value of $2,001,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 39,356 shares in the company, valued at $2,625,045.20. This represents a 320.65% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP James David Clark sold 7,513 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.35, for a total transaction of $498,487.55. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 8,394 shares of the company's stock, valued at $556,941.90. The trade was a 47.23% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.22% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.