CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) Lowered to “Neutral” at Cantor Fitzgerald

Cantor Fitzgerald downgraded shares of CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) from an overweight rating to a neutral rating in a report issued on Wednesday, Marketbeat.com reports. Cantor Fitzgerald currently has $58.00 price objective on the pharmacy operator’s stock, down from their prior price objective of $87.00.

Several other research analysts have also weighed in on CVS. SVB Leerink reiterated a market perform rating and set a $60.00 target price (down from $87.00) on shares of CVS Health in a report on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on CVS Health from $83.00 to $76.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 8th. Barclays initiated coverage on CVS Health in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. They set an equal weight rating and a $78.00 target price on the stock. Leerink Partnrs restated an outperform rating on shares of CVS Health in a report on Monday, February 26th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered CVS Health from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report on Thursday, February 15th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, CVS Health currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $86.28.

CVS Health Stock Down 16.8 %

NYSE:CVS opened at $56.32 on Wednesday. CVS Health has a 12-month low of $54.00 and a 12-month high of $83.25. 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 market capitalization of $70.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.72, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.56. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $73.63 and its 200-day simple moving average is $73.50.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 7th. The pharmacy operator reported $2.12 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.01 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $93.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $90.58 billion. CVS Health had a return on equity of 15.25% and a net margin of 2.33%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.99 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that CVS Health will post 8.31 earnings per share for the current year.

CVS Health Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Investors 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 4.72%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 19th. CVS Health’s dividend payout ratio is currently 41.18%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other CVS Health news, EVP Prem S. Shah sold 29,473 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 16th. The stock was 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 owns 39,765 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,059,916.75. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CVS Health

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of CVS. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of CVS Health by 74.0% during the third quarter. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC now owns 43,213 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $3,017,000 after acquiring an additional 18,385 shares during the period. Value Partners Investments Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of CVS Health by 26.5% during the third quarter. Value Partners Investments Inc. now owns 991,601 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $69,261,000 after acquiring an additional 207,702 shares during the period. Sonora Investment Management Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of CVS Health by 1.6% during the third quarter. Sonora Investment Management Group LLC now owns 50,488 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $3,525,000 after acquiring an additional 774 shares during the period. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC boosted its holdings in shares of CVS Health by 2.3% during the third quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 10,405 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $726,000 after acquiring an additional 233 shares during the period. Finally, Personal CFO Solutions LLC boosted its holdings in shares of CVS Health by 2.6% during the third quarter. Personal CFO Solutions LLC now owns 19,355 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $1,351,000 after acquiring an additional 491 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.