CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) Short Interest Update

CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS - Get Free Report) saw a significant growth in short interest during the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 19,030,000 shares, a growth of 7.1% from the November 30th total of 17,770,000 shares. Approximately 1.5% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 13,730,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.4 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on CVS Health from $68.00 to $58.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 15th. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of CVS Health from $75.00 to $71.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Truist Financial reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $67.00 price target (down previously from $76.00) on shares of CVS Health in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Wells Fargo & Company raised CVS Health from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $60.00 to $66.00 in a report on Monday, November 18th. Finally, StockNews.com cut CVS Health from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $69.12.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CVS Health

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hantz Financial Services Inc. purchased a new position in shares of CVS Health in the second quarter valued at about $126,000. Summit Financial LLC increased its stake in CVS Health by 190.6% in the second quarter. Summit Financial LLC now owns 12,166 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $719,000 after purchasing an additional 7,979 shares during the period. Claro Advisors LLC grew its stake in CVS Health by 3.2% in the 2nd quarter. Claro Advisors LLC now owns 9,461 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $559,000 after acquiring an additional 289 shares in the last quarter. Canal Insurance CO grew its stake in CVS Health by 5.3% in the second quarter. Canal Insurance CO now owns 200,000 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $11,812,000 after purchasing an additional 10,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Resonant Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of CVS Health by 2.5% during the second quarter. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC now owns 42,564 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock valued at $2,514,000 after buying an additional 1,018 shares during the period. 80.66% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

CVS Health Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CVS traded down $0.67 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $44.22. 10,619,385 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 11,647,537. The stock has a market capitalization of $55.65 billion, a PE ratio of 11.22, a PEG ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. CVS Health has a 52 week low of $43.56 and a 52 week high of $83.25. The company's 50 day moving average price is $53.05 and its 200 day moving average price is $57.21.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The pharmacy operator reported $1.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.08 by $0.01. CVS Health had a return on equity of 10.72% and a net margin of 1.36%. The business had revenue of $95.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $92.72 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.21 EPS. The business's revenue was up 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that CVS Health will post 5.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.