CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) Shares Sold by Lathrop Investment Management Corp

Lathrop Investment Management Corp lowered its position in shares of CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) by 2.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 129,129 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock after selling 3,177 shares during the period. CVS Health comprises about 2.1% of Lathrop Investment Management Corp’s holdings, making the stock its 27th largest position. Lathrop Investment Management Corp’s holdings in CVS Health were worth $10,196,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in CVS. FMR LLC increased its position in shares of CVS Health by 29.1% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 27,487,238 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $1,919,159,000 after purchasing an additional 6,194,441 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its position in CVS Health by 8,697.2% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,322,129 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $104,395,000 after acquiring an additional 1,307,100 shares during the period. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board increased its position in CVS Health by 49.9% in the 3rd quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 2,095,978 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $146,341,000 after acquiring an additional 698,054 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its position in CVS Health by 12.6% in the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 5,513,230 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $435,325,000 after acquiring an additional 616,785 shares during the period. Finally, J.P. Morgan Private Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in CVS Health in the 3rd quarter valued at about $34,379,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.66% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on CVS shares. Royal Bank of Canada dropped 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. Barclays initiated coverage on CVS Health in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $78.00 price objective on the stock. Leerink Partnrs reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of CVS Health in a report on Monday, February 26th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $87.00 price objective on shares of CVS Health in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, SVB Leerink initiated coverage on CVS Health in a report on Monday, February 26th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $88.00 price objective on the stock. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $89.44.

Insider Transactions at CVS Health

In related news, EVP Prem S. Shah sold 29,473 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.95, for a total transaction of $2,267,947.35. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 39,765 shares in the company, valued at $3,059,916.75. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

CVS Health Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of CVS stock traded down $0.15 on Friday, reaching $67.18. 6,396,438 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,376,818. The stock has a market cap of $84.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a quick ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $74.42 and a two-hundred day moving average of $73.64. CVS Health Co. has a 1-year low of $64.41 and a 1-year high of $83.25.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 7th. The pharmacy operator reported $2.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.01 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $93.81 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $90.58 billion. CVS Health had a return on equity of 15.25% and a net margin of 2.33%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 11.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.99 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that CVS Health Co. will post 8.31 EPS for the current year.

CVS Health Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.665 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 19th. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.96%. CVS Health’s payout ratio is 41.18%.

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.