CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) Trading Up 5.7% – What’s Next?

CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS)’s share price shot up 5.7% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $46.59 and last traded at $46.53. 4,449,280 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 61% from the average session volume of 11,458,583 shares. The stock had previously closed at $44.04.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on CVS. TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of CVS Health from $73.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 25th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on shares of CVS Health from $68.00 to $58.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded CVS Health from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $66.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Mizuho lowered their target price on CVS Health from $73.00 to $66.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $62.00 price objective on shares of CVS Health in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $70.50.

CVS Health Stock Up 4.9 %

The business has a 50-day moving average price of $57.55 and a 200 day moving average price of $58.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $58.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.73, a P/E/G ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The pharmacy operator reported $1.09 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $95.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $92.72 billion. CVS Health had a net margin of 1.36% and a return on equity of 10.72%. The business’s revenue was up 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.21 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that CVS Health Co. will post 5.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CVS Health Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, October 21st were paid a $0.665 dividend. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.76%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, October 21st. CVS Health’s payout ratio is 67.51%.

Institutional Trading of CVS Health

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Pzena Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of CVS Health by 132.9% during the 2nd quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 12,936,388 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $764,023,000 after acquiring an additional 7,382,931 shares during the last quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of CVS Health by 34.8% during the third 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. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of CVS Health by 3.6% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 56,527,909 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $3,554,475,000 after purchasing an additional 1,989,066 shares during the period. TOMS Capital Investment Management LP bought a new position in shares of CVS Health in the third quarter worth about $121,987,000. Finally, Pathway Financial Advisers LLC increased its stake in CVS Health by 5,864.2% in the 3rd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 1,730,343 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $108,804,000 after buying an additional 1,701,331 shares during the period. 80.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.