Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC Makes New Investment in CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS)

Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC purchased a new stake in CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 628,540 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock, valued at approximately $28,215,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Nebula Research & Development LLC raised its holdings in CVS Health by 322.5% during the 4th quarter. Nebula Research & Development LLC now owns 75,021 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $3,368,000 after buying an additional 57,263 shares during the period. Empire Financial Management Company LLC raised its holdings in CVS Health by 10.0% during the 4th quarter. Empire Financial Management Company LLC now owns 5,241 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $235,000 after buying an additional 475 shares during the period. Guardian Wealth Management Inc. raised its holdings in CVS Health by 151,236.4% during the 4th quarter. Guardian Wealth Management Inc. now owns 16,647 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $747,000 after buying an additional 16,636 shares during the period. Voya Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in CVS Health by 331.2% during the 4th quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 2,872,542 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $128,948,000 after buying an additional 2,206,299 shares during the period. Finally, Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. raised its holdings in CVS Health by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 1,192,774 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $53,544,000 after buying an additional 26,738 shares during the period. 80.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. StockNews.com upgraded CVS Health from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Edward Jones raised shares of CVS Health from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of CVS Health from $62.00 to $59.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of CVS Health from $68.00 to $73.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of CVS Health from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note 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. According to MarketBeat.com, CVS Health has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $71.83.

CVS Health Trading Up 6.1 %

CVS traded up $4.10 during trading on Thursday, reaching $70.81. 12,168,494 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 11,195,217. The company's fifty day moving average price is $66.51 and its 200-day moving average price is $58.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $89.28 billion, a PE ratio of 19.35, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.57. CVS Health Co. has a fifty-two week low of $43.56 and a fifty-two week high of $72.51.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The pharmacy operator reported $2.25 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.62 by $0.63. CVS Health had a return on equity of 9.11% and a net margin of 1.24%. The business had revenue of $94.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $93.07 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.31 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that CVS Health Co. will post 5.89 EPS for the current year.

CVS Health Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 22nd will be paid a dividend of $0.665 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 22nd. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.76%. CVS Health's payout ratio is 72.68%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Michael F. Mahoney bought 30,000 shares of the business's 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 purchase, the director now owns 39,356 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,625,045.20. The trade was a 320.65 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP James David Clark sold 7,513 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were 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 $556,941.90. The trade was a 47.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.22% of the company's stock.

CVS Health 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.