Erste Asset Management GmbH Sells 82,829 Shares of CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS)

Erste Asset Management GmbH lowered its stake in CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) by 83.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 16,692 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock after selling 82,829 shares during the quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH’s holdings in CVS Health were worth $743,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in CVS Health during the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Ridgewood Investments LLC increased its stake in CVS Health by 255.7% during the 4th quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC now owns 626 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 450 shares in the last quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in CVS Health during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. bought a new stake in CVS Health during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new stake in CVS Health during the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. Institutional investors own 80.66% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald raised shares of CVS Health from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Piper Sandler cut their price objective on shares of CVS Health from $72.00 to $64.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 25th. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of CVS Health from $62.00 to $59.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Argus set a $77.00 price objective on shares of CVS Health in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, 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 report on Thursday, February 13th. Four equities research 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 data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $69.83.

CVS Health Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of CVS Health stock opened at $65.63 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $58.47 and its 200 day simple moving average is $56.98. CVS Health Co. has a 52-week low of $43.56 and a 52-week high of $80.75. The stock has a market capitalization of $82.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.93, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.81.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The pharmacy operator reported $1.19 earnings per share 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, research analysts anticipate that CVS Health Co. will post 5.89 EPS for the current year.

CVS Health Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 23rd were given a dividend of $0.665 per share. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.05%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 23rd. CVS Health’s dividend payout ratio is presently 72.68%.

Insider Activity

In related news, 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 bought at an average cost of $66.70 per share, for a total transaction of $2,001,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, 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 owns 8,394 shares in the company, valued at approximately $556,941.90. This trade represents a 47.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.24% 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.