CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) Receives $70.41 Average PT from Brokerages

Shares of CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS - Get Free Report) have earned a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the twenty-one analysts that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, seventeen have assigned a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $70.41.

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Argus set a $77.00 price objective on CVS Health in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. StockNews.com upgraded CVS Health from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Leerink Partners upgraded shares of CVS Health from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and increased their price target for the company from $55.00 to $75.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of CVS Health from $71.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price 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.

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CVS Health Stock Down 5.9 %

NYSE:CVS traded down $3.97 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $63.54. 13,291,234 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 11,586,970. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. The company has a market cap of $80.11 billion, a PE ratio of 17.36, a PEG ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.57. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $63.47 and its 200-day simple moving average is $58.01. CVS Health has a one year low of $43.56 and a one year high of $74.85.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The pharmacy operator reported $1.19 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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%. Equities analysts predict that CVS Health will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current year.

CVS Health Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 22nd will be paid a $0.665 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 22nd. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.19%. CVS Health's dividend payout ratio is currently 72.68%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP James David Clark sold 7,513 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the senior vice president now owns 8,394 shares of the company's stock, valued at $556,941.90. This represents 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 available through the SEC website. Also, Director Michael F. Mahoney acquired 30,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were purchased at an average cost 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 $2,625,045.20. This represents a 320.65 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.24% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Exeter Financial LLC boosted its holdings in CVS Health by 5.1% during the 1st quarter. Exeter Financial LLC now owns 42,074 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock valued at $2,851,000 after acquiring an additional 2,035 shares during the period. Farmers Trust Co. lifted its position in CVS Health by 5.3% in the first quarter. Farmers Trust Co. now owns 80,718 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock valued at $5,469,000 after purchasing an additional 4,096 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its holdings in shares of CVS Health by 308.6% in the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 4,061 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $275,000 after purchasing an additional 3,067 shares during the last quarter. First Hawaiian Bank increased its stake in shares of CVS Health by 4.0% in the first quarter. First Hawaiian Bank now owns 102,950 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $6,975,000 after buying an additional 3,990 shares during the period. Finally, Marcum Wealth LLC raised its holdings in CVS Health by 30.2% during the 1st quarter. Marcum Wealth LLC now owns 11,354 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock valued at $769,000 after buying an additional 2,631 shares during the last quarter. 80.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.