Capital World Investors Purchases 12,819,148 Shares of CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS)

Capital World Investors lifted its holdings in shares of CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) by 26.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 61,039,777 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 12,819,148 shares during the period. Capital World Investors owned 4.85% of CVS Health worth $2,739,927,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ridgewood Investments LLC lifted its position in shares of CVS Health by 255.7% during the 4th quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC now owns 626 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 450 shares during the period. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of CVS Health during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of CVS Health in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Financial Perspectives Inc boosted its holdings in CVS Health by 137.5% in the fourth quarter. Financial Perspectives Inc now owns 805 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 466 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Compass Planning Associates Inc bought a new position in shares of CVS Health in the 4th quarter worth $37,000. 80.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP James David Clark sold 7,513 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.35, for a total value of $498,487.55. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 8,394 shares in the company, valued at approximately $556,941.90. This represents a 47.23 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Michael F. Mahoney acquired 30,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $66.70 per share, for a total transaction of $2,001,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 39,356 shares in the company, valued at $2,625,045.20. This represents a 320.65 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.24% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

CVS Health Trading Down 2.0 %

Shares of CVS Health stock opened at $67.19 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $66.46 and its 200-day moving average price is $58.79. The company has a market cap of $84.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.36, a PEG ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.57. CVS Health Co. has a 12-month low of $43.56 and a 12-month high of $71.45. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The pharmacy operator reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.89 by $0.30. CVS Health had a net margin of 1.24% and a return on equity of 9.11%. On average, equities analysts expect that CVS Health Co. will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CVS Health Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.665 per share. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.96%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 22nd. CVS Health’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 72.68%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. UBS Group decreased their target price on shares of CVS Health from $62.00 to $59.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on CVS Health from $68.00 to $73.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Barclays increased their price target on CVS Health from $71.00 to $73.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. StockNews.com raised shares of CVS Health from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Edward Jones upgraded shares of CVS Health from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, CVS Health has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $71.83.

CVS Health 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.