Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Acquires 232,464 Shares of CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS)

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) by 1.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 12,950,289 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 232,464 shares during the quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. owned approximately 1.01% of CVS Health worth $993,351,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Atticus Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in CVS Health by 149.0% in the fourth quarter. Atticus Wealth Management LLC now owns 366 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 219 shares in the last quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of CVS Health by 111.5% during the third quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 461 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. ZRC Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of CVS Health by 400.0% in the fourth quarter. ZRC Wealth Management LLC now owns 500 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 400 shares during the period. Coston McIsaac & Partners increased its position in CVS Health by 42.6% during the fourth quarter. Coston McIsaac & Partners now owns 539 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 161 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners bought a new stake in CVS Health during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $50,000. Institutional investors own 80.66% of the company’s stock.

CVS Health Trading Down 1.1 %

Shares of CVS stock traded down $0.61 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $55.13. 6,920,938 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 11,817,339. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78. CVS Health Co. has a 12-month low of $53.70 and a 12-month high of $83.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $69.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 0.56. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $71.95 and its 200-day moving average price is $73.09.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) last released its earnings results 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 net margin of 2.03% and a return on equity of 13.53%. The business 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 company posted $2.20 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that CVS Health Co. will post 7.03 earnings per share for the current year.

CVS Health Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 22nd were paid a dividend of $0.665 per share. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.82%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 19th. CVS Health’s dividend payout ratio is currently 46.75%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Edward J. Ludwig acquired 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 2nd. The stock was bought at an average cost 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Prem S. Shah sold 29,473 shares of CVS Health stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.95, for a total value of $2,267,947.35. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 39,765 shares in the company, valued at $3,059,916.75. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Edward J. Ludwig bought 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 2nd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $53.88 per share, for a total transaction of $53,880.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now 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

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on CVS shares. Mizuho dropped their price target on shares of CVS Health from $86.00 to $72.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Bank of America decreased their price objective on CVS Health from $95.00 to $77.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Cantor Fitzgerald downgraded CVS Health from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $87.00 to $58.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of CVS Health from $78.00 to $63.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on CVS Health from $85.00 to $74.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $77.67.

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.