Benjamin Edwards Inc. Sells 766 Shares of CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS)

Benjamin Edwards Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) by 12.2% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,529 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock after selling 766 shares during the quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc.’s holdings in CVS Health were worth $327,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in CVS. Capital International Investors raised its holdings in shares of CVS Health by 47.4% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 33,691,698 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $2,660,298,000 after acquiring an additional 10,837,801 shares in the last quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC grew its stake in CVS Health by 132.9% in the second quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 12,936,388 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $764,023,000 after purchasing an additional 7,382,931 shares during the period. Capital World Investors grew its stake in CVS Health by 8.0% in the first quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 43,776,874 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $3,491,643,000 after purchasing an additional 3,232,172 shares during the period. State of Michigan Retirement System grew its stake in CVS Health by 402.5% in the second quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 2,005,677 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $118,455,000 after purchasing an additional 1,606,500 shares during the period. Finally, Junto Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in CVS Health in the fourth quarter worth $111,209,000. Institutional investors own 80.66% of the company’s stock.

CVS Health Stock Performance

NYSE:CVS opened at $57.51 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $58.31 and a 200 day moving average price of $62.52. The stock has a market capitalization of $72.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.11, a P/E/G ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 0.53. CVS Health Co. has a 12-month low of $52.77 and a 12-month high of $83.25. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The pharmacy operator reported $1.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.73 by $0.10. CVS Health had a net margin of 1.98% and a return on equity of 12.72%. The firm had revenue of $91.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $91.41 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.21 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that CVS Health Co. will post 6.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CVS Health Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 1st. Investors of record on Monday, October 21st will be given a $0.665 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, October 21st. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.63%. CVS Health’s dividend payout ratio is currently 46.75%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $68.00 price target on shares of CVS Health in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on CVS Health from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $62.00 price target on shares of CVS Health in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their target price on CVS Health from $64.00 to $63.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price target on shares of CVS Health from $65.00 to $63.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $72.10.

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.