Mariner LLC Cuts Stock Position in CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS)

Mariner LLC trimmed its stake in CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS - Free Report) by 53.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 248,727 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock after selling 285,706 shares during the period. Mariner LLC's holdings in CVS Health were worth $11,165,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of CVS Health by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 27,051,540 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $1,211,582,000 after acquiring an additional 689,867 shares during the period. Pzena Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of CVS Health by 49.3% during the fourth quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 19,610,579 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock valued at $880,319,000 after purchasing an additional 6,475,271 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in CVS Health in the fourth quarter worth $839,574,000. Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in CVS Health by 30.1% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 18,038,089 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock valued at $809,730,000 after buying an additional 4,173,243 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of CVS Health by 5.8% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 12,918,949 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock valued at $579,932,000 after buying an additional 710,281 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.66% of the company's stock.

CVS Health Stock Performance

CVS stock traded up $0.49 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $65.94. 2,060,295 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 11,794,329. CVS Health Co. has a 52-week low of $43.56 and a 52-week high of $71.45. The stock's 50-day moving average is $66.48 and its 200 day moving average is $58.77. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. The stock has a market cap of $83.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.02, a PEG ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.57.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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%. As a group, analysts anticipate that CVS Health Co. will post 5.89 EPS for the current year.

CVS Health Dividend Announcement

The company 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. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 22nd. CVS Health's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 72.68%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CVS has been the subject of several research reports. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of CVS Health from $51.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on shares of CVS Health from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. UBS Group cut their price target on CVS Health from $62.00 to $59.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded CVS Health from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of CVS Health in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $71.83.

Insider Buying and Selling at CVS Health

In related news, SVP James David Clark sold 7,513 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were 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 owns 8,394 shares in the company, valued at approximately $556,941.90. This represents a 47.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Michael F. Mahoney purchased 30,000 shares of CVS Health stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was bought 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 $2,625,045.20. The trade was a 320.65 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 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.