CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) Shares Sold by Essex Financial Services Inc.

Essex Financial Services Inc. trimmed its position in shares of CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) by 4.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 20,539 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock after selling 869 shares during the quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in CVS Health were worth $922,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Assetmark Inc. raised its position in shares of CVS Health by 9.7% in the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 410,001 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $25,781,000 after buying an additional 36,132 shares during the last quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC lifted its stake in CVS Health by 28.7% in the 3rd quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 46,938 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $2,951,000 after purchasing an additional 10,465 shares in the last quarter. Cullinan Associates Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of CVS Health by 43.8% during the 3rd quarter. Cullinan Associates Inc. now owns 122,682 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $7,125,000 after purchasing an additional 37,395 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in shares of CVS Health by 4.8% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,434,476 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $90,200,000 after purchasing an additional 66,244 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sompo Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of CVS Health by 8.4% in the third quarter. Sompo Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 134,523 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $8,459,000 after purchasing an additional 10,453 shares during the last quarter. 80.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on CVS shares. StockNews.com cut CVS Health from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of CVS Health from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $60.00 to $66.00 in a report on Monday, November 18th. Edward Jones raised shares of CVS Health from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Evercore ISI raised their price target on shares of CVS Health from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Piper Sandler decreased their price objective on CVS Health from $72.00 to $64.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, CVS Health has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $67.78.

CVS Health Stock Performance

NYSE:CVS opened at $55.01 on Wednesday. CVS Health Co. has a 52 week low of $43.56 and a 52 week high of $80.75. The company has a market cap of $69.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.60 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $50.69 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $55.95.

CVS Health Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 23rd were given a dividend of $0.665 per share. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.84%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 23rd. CVS Health’s dividend payout ratio is presently 67.51%.

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.