Principal Financial Group Inc. Has $90.20 Million Stake in CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS)

Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) by 4.8% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,434,476 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock after buying an additional 66,244 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in CVS Health were worth $90,200,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Livelsberger Financial Advisory bought a new position in shares of CVS Health during the third quarter worth about $31,000. Reston Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in CVS Health during the third quarter worth about $32,000. First Community Trust NA increased its holdings in shares of CVS Health by 116.2% during the 2nd quarter. First Community Trust NA now owns 562 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 302 shares during the last quarter. Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. bought a new position in shares of CVS Health in the third quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, ORG Partners LLC lifted its position in CVS Health by 11,840.0% during the second quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 597 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 592 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.66% of the company’s stock.

CVS Health Stock Performance

Shares of CVS Health stock opened at $55.56 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $59.56 and a 200-day moving average price of $59.19. CVS Health Co. has a 52 week low of $52.77 and a 52 week high of $83.25. The company has a market cap of $69.89 billion, a PE ratio of 14.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a quick ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The pharmacy operator reported $1.09 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.08 by $0.01. CVS Health had a net margin of 1.36% and a return on equity of 10.72%. The company had revenue of $95.43 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $92.72 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.21 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that CVS Health Co. will post 6.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CVS Health Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, October 21st were issued a $0.665 dividend. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.79%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, October 21st. CVS Health’s dividend payout ratio is presently 67.51%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Mizuho cut their price target on CVS Health from $73.00 to $66.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price target on CVS Health from $64.00 to $63.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on CVS Health from $61.00 to $60.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 4th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $68.00 target price on shares of CVS Health in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price target on shares of CVS Health from $62.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $73.00.

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.