Tower Research Capital LLC TRC Raises Holdings in CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS)

Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its stake in shares of CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS - Free Report) by 40.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 70,218 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock after purchasing an additional 20,107 shares during the period. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC's holdings in CVS Health were worth $3,152,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in CVS. Ridgewood Investments LLC lifted its position in shares of CVS Health by 255.7% in the fourth quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC now owns 626 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 450 shares in the last quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of CVS Health in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. bought a new stake in shares of CVS Health in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Financial Perspectives Inc increased its holdings in shares of CVS Health by 137.5% in the fourth quarter. Financial Perspectives Inc now owns 805 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 466 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of CVS Health by 112.1% in the fourth quarter. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. now owns 827 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 437 shares during the last quarter. 80.66% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

CVS Health Stock Performance

NYSE:CVS traded down $0.62 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $65.30. The company had a trading volume of 5,020,541 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,841,771. CVS Health Co. has a 1-year low of $43.56 and a 1-year high of $71.45. The firm has a market cap of $82.33 billion, a PE ratio of 17.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.57. The business's 50 day moving average price is $66.48 and its 200-day moving average price is $58.77. 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 (NYSE:CVS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The pharmacy operator reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.89 by $0.30. CVS Health had a return on equity of 9.11% and a net margin of 1.24%. Research analysts forecast that CVS Health Co. will post 5.89 EPS for the current year.

CVS Health Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 22nd will be issued a $0.665 dividend. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.07%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 22nd. CVS Health's payout ratio is presently 72.68%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have weighed in on CVS. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on CVS Health from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on CVS Health from $68.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Barclays boosted their price objective on CVS Health from $71.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Wolfe Research upped their target price on CVS Health from 67.00 to 70.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of CVS Health in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $71.83.

Insider Buying and Selling at CVS Health

In other news, SVP James David Clark sold 7,513 shares of the company'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 transaction of $498,487.55. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 8,394 shares of the company's stock, valued at $556,941.90. This represents a 47.23 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Michael F. Mahoney bought 30,000 shares of CVS Health stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $66.70 per share, with a total value of $2,001,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 39,356 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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. 1.22% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.