CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) Trading 0.4% Higher on Insider Buying Activity

CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) shares rose 0.4% during mid-day trading on Friday after an insider bought additional shares in the company. The company traded as high as $55.55 and last traded at $55.38. Approximately 6,250,598 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 46% from the average daily volume of 11,530,374 shares. The stock had previously closed at $55.15.

Specifically, Director Edward J. Ludwig purchased 1,000 shares of CVS Health stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 2nd. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $53.88 per share, with a total value of $53,880.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 21,630 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,165,424.40. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other CVS Health news, EVP Prem S. Shah sold 29,473 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 39,765 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,059,916.75. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Edward J. Ludwig bought 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 2nd. The stock was bought at an average price of $53.88 per share, for a total transaction of $53,880.00. Following the purchase, the director now 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.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on CVS shares. Leerink Partnrs cut CVS Health from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of CVS Health from $78.00 to $63.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on CVS Health from $86.00 to $84.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. UBS Group cut CVS Health from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $85.00 to $60.00 in a research report on Thursday. Finally, StockNews.com lowered CVS Health from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 15th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $80.35.

CVS Health Trading Up 1.4 %

The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $73.19 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $73.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a current ratio of 0.81.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 1st. The pharmacy operator reported $1.31 earnings per share (EPS) 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 analyst estimates of $89.33 billion. CVS Health had a return on equity of 13.53% and a net margin of 2.03%. CVS Health’s quarterly revenue was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.20 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that CVS Health Co. will post 7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CVS Health Dividend Announcement

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CVS Health

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Atticus Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of CVS Health by 149.0% in the 4th quarter. Atticus Wealth Management LLC now owns 366 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 219 shares in the last quarter. USA Financial Formulas raised its holdings in CVS Health by 573.2% during the fourth quarter. USA Financial Formulas now owns 377 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 321 shares in the last quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC lifted its position in shares of CVS Health by 111.5% in the third quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 461 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 243 shares during the last quarter. Ables Iannone Moore & Associates Inc. bought a new stake in shares of CVS Health during the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Creekmur Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in CVS Health in the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.66% of the company’s stock.

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.