CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) Shares Acquired by Peregrine Asset Advisers Inc.

Peregrine Asset Advisers Inc. lifted its position in shares of CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) by 4.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 70,253 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock after buying an additional 3,296 shares during the period. CVS Health makes up about 2.7% of Peregrine Asset Advisers Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 5th biggest holding. Peregrine Asset Advisers Inc.’s holdings in CVS Health were worth $5,547,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. increased its holdings in CVS Health by 4.9% in the 4th quarter. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. now owns 2,859 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $226,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares in the last quarter. Apella Capital LLC boosted its position in CVS Health by 4.2% in the 4th quarter. Apella Capital LLC now owns 3,378 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $272,000 after buying an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. Prairie Sky Financial Group LLC boosted its position in CVS Health by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. Prairie Sky Financial Group LLC now owns 3,612 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $285,000 after buying an additional 141 shares during the last quarter. WealthShield Partners LLC boosted its position in CVS Health by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. WealthShield Partners LLC now owns 4,498 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $355,000 after buying an additional 141 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sugarloaf Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in CVS Health by 9.5% in the 4th quarter. Sugarloaf Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,639 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $129,000 after buying an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. 80.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald cut shares of CVS Health from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $87.00 to $58.00 in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Piper Sandler increased their price target on shares of CVS Health from $93.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 15th. UBS Group cut shares of CVS Health from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $85.00 to $60.00 in a research report on Thursday. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of CVS Health from $78.00 to $63.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Finally, SVB Leerink reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $60.00 price target (down previously from $87.00) on shares of CVS Health in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $80.35.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Edward J. Ludwig acquired 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 2nd. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $53.88 per share, for a total transaction of $53,880.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 21,630 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,165,424.40. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, EVP Prem S. Shah sold 29,473 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on 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 owns 39,765 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,059,916.75. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Edward J. Ludwig bought 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 2nd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $53.88 per share, with a total value of $53,880.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 21,630 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,165,424.40. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

CVS Health Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CVS traded up $0.07 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $55.97. 16,502,619 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 11,808,347. CVS Health Co. has a fifty-two week low of $53.70 and a fifty-two week high of $83.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.61. The firm has a market cap of $70.26 billion, a PE ratio of 9.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 0.56. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $72.36 and a 200-day simple moving average of $73.18.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 company had revenue of $88.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $89.33 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.20 EPS. CVS Health’s revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that CVS Health Co. will post 7.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CVS Health Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 22nd were given a $0.665 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 19th. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.75%. CVS Health’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.75%.

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.