Handelsbanken Fonder AB Sells 19,011 Shares of CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS)

Handelsbanken Fonder AB cut its position in CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) by 3.2% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 584,214 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock after selling 19,011 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in CVS Health were worth $39,580,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CVS. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of CVS Health during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. bought a new position in CVS Health in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. McIlrath & Eck LLC increased its holdings in CVS Health by 32.6% during the fourth quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 707 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 174 shares during the last quarter. Financial Perspectives Inc raised its holdings in shares of CVS Health by 137.5% in the 4th quarter. Financial Perspectives Inc now owns 805 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 466 shares during the period. Finally, MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of CVS Health by 112.1% in the fourth quarter. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. now owns 827 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 437 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.66% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. Leerink Partnrs upgraded shares of CVS Health from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $84.00 price target (up from $76.00) on shares of CVS Health in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Wolfe Research lifted their price target on CVS Health from 67.00 to 70.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Leerink Partners raised CVS Health from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $55.00 to $75.00 in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised CVS Health from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, CVS Health presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $74.75.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Guy P. Sansone purchased 1,570 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 5th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $63.70 per share, with a total value of $100,009.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 12,007 shares in the company, valued at approximately $764,845.90. This represents a 15.04% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.22% of the company’s stock.

CVS Health Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of NYSE CVS opened at $64.21 on Wednesday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $65.06 and a 200-day moving average of $60.01. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $81.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.54, a PEG ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.56. CVS Health Co. has a 12 month low of $43.56 and a 12 month high of $72.51.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The pharmacy operator reported $2.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.62 by $0.63. CVS Health had a net margin of 1.24% and a return on equity of 9.11%. The company had revenue of $94.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $93.07 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.31 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that CVS Health Co. will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CVS Health Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 22nd were paid a dividend of $0.665 per share. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.14%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 22nd. CVS Health’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 63.48%.

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.