CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) Shares Sold by California Public Employees Retirement System

California Public Employees Retirement System lowered its position in shares of CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS - Free Report) by 4.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,536,676 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock after selling 130,648 shares during the period. California Public Employees Retirement System owned about 0.20% of CVS Health worth $113,871,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in CVS Health in the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. Ridgewood Investments LLC raised its position in CVS Health by 255.7% in the fourth quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC now owns 626 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 450 shares in the last quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in CVS Health in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of CVS Health during the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Financial Perspectives Inc grew its stake in shares of CVS Health by 137.5% during the 4th 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 period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.66% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other CVS Health news, SVP James David Clark sold 7,513 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the senior vice president now owns 8,394 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $556,941.90. The trade was a 47.23 % 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. Also, Director Michael F. Mahoney acquired 30,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was 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 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. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

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CVS Health Trading Down 5.9 %

CVS stock traded down $3.97 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $63.54. The stock had a trading volume of 13,291,234 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,586,970. CVS Health Co. has a 12-month low of $43.56 and a 12-month high of $74.85. The firm has a market cap of $80.11 billion, a PE ratio of 17.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.57. The company's 50-day moving average price is $63.47 and its 200 day moving average price is $58.01. 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 released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The pharmacy operator reported $1.19 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.89 by $0.30. CVS Health had a return on equity of 9.11% and a net margin of 1.24%. On average, equities research analysts predict that CVS Health Co. will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CVS Health Dividend Announcement

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. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 22nd. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.19%. CVS Health's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 72.68%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently commented on CVS shares. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective 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. Leerink Partnrs raised CVS Health from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Argus set a $77.00 price target on CVS Health in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. StockNews.com raised CVS Health from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Leerink Partners raised CVS Health from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their target price for the company from $55.00 to $75.00 in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, CVS Health presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $70.39.

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.