Sigma Planning Corp Has $1.77 Million Stake in CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS)

Sigma Planning Corp decreased its stake in CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) by 61.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 22,365 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock after selling 35,612 shares during the quarter. Sigma Planning Corp’s holdings in CVS Health were worth $1,766,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Handelsbanken Fonder AB boosted its stake in CVS Health by 14.3% in the fourth quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 557,756 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $44,040,000 after purchasing an additional 69,594 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC boosted its stake in CVS Health by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. CWM LLC now owns 72,073 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $5,691,000 after purchasing an additional 1,168 shares in the last quarter. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in CVS Health in the fourth quarter worth $75,000. Powell Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in CVS Health in the fourth quarter worth $208,000. Finally, Lindbrook Capital LLC boosted its stake in CVS Health by 35.3% in the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 9,013 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $712,000 after purchasing an additional 2,351 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.66% of the company’s stock.

CVS Health Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of CVS Health stock opened at $69.80 on Monday. CVS Health Co. has a 1 year low of $64.41 and a 1 year high of $83.25. The business has a 50-day moving average of $75.29 and a two-hundred day moving average of $73.77. The company has a market capitalization of $87.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.63.

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, topping the consensus estimate of $2.01 by $0.11. CVS Health had a return on equity of 15.25% and a net margin of 2.33%. The company had revenue of $93.81 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $90.58 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.99 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that CVS Health Co. will post 8.32 EPS for the current year.

CVS Health Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 22nd will be issued a $0.665 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 19th. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.81%. CVS Health’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 41.18%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CVS has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. SVB Leerink initiated coverage on CVS Health in a research report on Monday, February 26th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $88.00 target price for the company. StockNews.com downgraded CVS Health from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 15th. Leerink Partnrs restated an “outperform” rating on shares of CVS Health in a research report on Monday, February 26th. Barclays initiated coverage on CVS Health in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $78.00 target price for the company. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their target price on CVS Health from $93.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 15th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, CVS Health has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $89.44.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other CVS Health news, EVP Prem S. Shah sold 29,473 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.95, for a total value of $2,267,947.35. Following the completion of the sale, 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 filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate 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.