CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) Rating Lowered to Neutral at Cantor Fitzgerald

Cantor Fitzgerald lowered shares of CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) from an overweight rating to a neutral rating in a research note published on Wednesday morning, MarketBeat reports. Cantor Fitzgerald currently has $58.00 target price on the pharmacy operator’s stock, down from their previous target price of $87.00.

Several other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on the company. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on CVS Health from $86.00 to $84.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 8th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of CVS Health from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on shares of CVS Health from $93.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research note on Friday, March 15th. Barclays started coverage on shares of CVS Health in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. They set an equal weight rating and a $78.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of CVS Health from $83.00 to $76.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $80.35.

CVS Health Stock Performance

Shares of CVS opened at $55.90 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $70.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 0.56. The company’s fifty day moving average is $72.77 and its 200-day moving average is $73.26. The company has a quick ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78. CVS Health has a 12 month low of $53.70 and a 12 month high of $83.25.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The pharmacy operator reported $1.31 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.69 by ($0.38). The company had revenue of $88.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $89.33 billion. CVS Health had a net margin of 2.03% and a return on equity of 13.53%. CVS Health’s quarterly revenue was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.20 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that CVS Health will post 7.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CVS Health Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 22nd were given a $0.665 dividend. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.76%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 19th. CVS Health’s payout ratio is presently 46.75%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Edward J. Ludwig purchased 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 2nd. The stock was acquired at an average price of $53.88 per share, with a total value of $53,880.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 21,630 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,165,424.40. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Prem S. Shah sold 29,473 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.95, for a total value of $2,267,947.35. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 39,765 shares in the company, valued at $3,059,916.75. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Edward J. Ludwig bought 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 2nd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $53.88 per share, with a total value of $53,880.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 21,630 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,165,424.40. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Atticus Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in CVS Health by 149.0% during the 4th quarter. Atticus Wealth Management LLC now owns 366 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 219 shares during the last quarter. USA Financial Formulas boosted its position in shares of CVS Health by 573.2% during the fourth quarter. USA Financial Formulas now owns 377 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 321 shares in the last quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of CVS Health by 111.5% in the 3rd quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 461 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 243 shares during the period. Ables Iannone Moore & Associates Inc. bought a new stake in shares of CVS Health in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Creekmur Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in CVS Health during the 4th quarter worth $34,000. 80.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

CVS Health Company 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.