Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Grows Stock Position in CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its position in CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) by 6.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 115,101 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock after buying an additional 6,899 shares during the quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in CVS Health were worth $9,088,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Cantor Fitzgerald Investment Advisor L.P grew its position in shares of CVS Health by 92.9% in the first quarter. Cantor Fitzgerald Investment Advisor L.P now owns 377,875 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $38,245,000 after purchasing an additional 181,966 shares in the last quarter. United Bank grew its position in shares of CVS Health by 7.2% in the first quarter. United Bank now owns 18,658 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $1,888,000 after purchasing an additional 1,260 shares in the last quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P grew its position in shares of CVS Health by 4,063.8% in the first quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 12,075 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $1,222,000 after purchasing an additional 11,785 shares in the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. grew its position in shares of CVS Health by 116.9% in the first quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 2,572 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $260,000 after purchasing an additional 1,386 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ergoteles LLC purchased a new position in shares of CVS Health in the first quarter valued at $1,551,000. 80.66% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at CVS Health

In related news, EVP Prem S. Shah sold 29,473 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 in the company, valued at approximately $3,059,916.75. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.24% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

CVS Health Trading Up 1.2 %

NYSE CVS opened at $69.39 on Friday. CVS Health Co. has a 1-year low of $64.41 and a 1-year high of $83.25. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $75.42 and a 200-day moving average of $73.70. The firm has a market cap of $87.46 billion, a PE ratio of 10.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 0.52.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 7th. The pharmacy operator reported $2.12 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 analyst estimates of $90.58 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.99 EPS. CVS Health’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast 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. Investors of record on Monday, April 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.665 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 19th. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.83%. CVS Health’s dividend payout ratio is presently 41.18%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CVS has been the subject of several recent research reports. Barclays started coverage on CVS Health in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $78.00 price target for the company. StockNews.com lowered CVS Health from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on CVS Health from $83.00 to $76.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 8th. HSBC started coverage on CVS Health in a research note on Friday, December 22nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $94.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on CVS Health from $93.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 15th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $89.44.

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.