CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) Stock Price Down 1.7% – Here’s Why

CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS)’s stock price dropped 1.7% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $50.63 and last traded at $51.25. Approximately 3,420,566 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 75% from the average daily volume of 13,702,923 shares. The stock had previously closed at $52.14.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently commented on CVS. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on CVS Health from $73.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 25th. Truist Financial cut their price objective on shares of CVS Health from $67.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $62.00 target price on shares of CVS Health in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. UBS Group raised their price objective on CVS Health from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded CVS Health from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $66.00 target price for the company in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $68.71.

CVS Health Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $65.56 billion, a PE ratio of 13.20, a P/E/G ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $51.68 and its 200 day moving average price is $56.44.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The pharmacy operator reported $1.09 earnings per share (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 last year, the company earned $2.21 earnings per share. CVS Health’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that CVS Health Co. will post 5.22 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CVS Health Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 3rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 23rd will be given a $0.665 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, January 23rd. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.11%. CVS Health’s payout ratio is currently 67.51%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of CVS. State Street Corp increased its holdings in CVS Health by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 56,527,909 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $3,554,475,000 after purchasing an additional 1,989,066 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of CVS Health by 1.8% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 26,361,673 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $1,651,997,000 after buying an additional 461,569 shares during the last quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in CVS Health by 1.5% in the third quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 13,135,308 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $825,948,000 after acquiring an additional 198,920 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in CVS Health by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 12,208,668 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $767,681,000 after acquiring an additional 304,386 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of CVS Health by 34.8% in the 3rd quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 11,897,034 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $748,085,000 after purchasing an additional 3,071,613 shares during the last quarter. 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.