Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC Has $417,000 Stock Position in CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS)

Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC decreased its position in CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) by 3.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,276 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock after selling 187 shares during the period. Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in CVS Health were worth $417,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of CVS Health by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 117,162,626 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $8,180,295,000 after acquiring an additional 485,744 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its position in shares of CVS Health by 29.1% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 27,487,238 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $1,919,159,000 after acquiring an additional 6,194,441 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in CVS Health by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 14,214,296 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $992,442,000 after acquiring an additional 305,564 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada increased its stake in CVS Health by 2.2% in the third quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 14,136,920 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $987,041,000 after purchasing an additional 303,512 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in CVS Health by 2.6% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 12,717,825 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $864,821,000 after purchasing an additional 324,391 shares during the period. 80.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

CVS Health Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE:CVS traded up $0.07 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $55.97. 16,612,170 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 11,808,347. CVS Health Co. has a 12 month low of $53.70 and a 12 month high of $83.25. The company has a market cap of $70.26 billion, a PE ratio of 9.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.61. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $72.77 and a 200-day moving average price of $73.29.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 1st. The pharmacy operator reported $1.31 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.69 by ($0.38). CVS Health had a return on equity of 13.53% and a net margin of 2.03%. The company had revenue of $88.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $89.33 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.20 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that CVS Health Co. will post 7.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CVS Health Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Investors of record on Monday, April 22nd were given a dividend of $0.665 per share. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.75%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 19th. CVS Health’s payout ratio is currently 46.75%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Edward J. Ludwig purchased 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 2nd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $53.88 per share, with a total value of $53,880.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 21,630 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,165,424.40. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other 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 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Edward J. Ludwig bought 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 2nd. The stock was purchased at an average price of $53.88 per share, with a total value of $53,880.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 21,630 shares in the company, valued at $1,165,424.40. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CVS has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective 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. UBS Group lowered shares of CVS Health from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $85.00 to $60.00 in a research note on Thursday. Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $66.00 price objective (down previously from $90.00) on shares of CVS Health in a report on Thursday. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on CVS Health from $86.00 to $84.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 8th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of CVS Health from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $80.35.

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.