AlphaQuest LLC Sells 22,156 Shares of CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS)

AlphaQuest LLC trimmed its position in CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) by 76.1% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 6,963 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock after selling 22,156 shares during the quarter. AlphaQuest LLC’s holdings in CVS Health were worth $313,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in CVS. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of CVS Health in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new position in CVS Health in the third quarter valued at about $31,000. Ridgewood Investments LLC raised its stake in CVS Health by 255.7% during the fourth quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC now owns 626 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 450 shares in the last quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of CVS Health in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of CVS Health in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $40,000. 80.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other CVS Health news, Director Michael F. Mahoney purchased 30,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $66.70 per share, for a total transaction of $2,001,000.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 39,356 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,625,045.20. This trade represents a 320.65 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP James David Clark sold 7,513 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.35, for a total transaction 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 $556,941.90. This trade represents a 47.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

CVS Health Stock Performance

Shares of CVS stock opened at $65.63 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. CVS Health Co. has a 52 week low of $43.56 and a 52 week high of $80.75. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $58.47 and a 200-day moving average of $57.00. The company has a market cap of $82.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.53.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The pharmacy operator reported $1.19 earnings per share 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 forecast that CVS Health Co. will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current year.

CVS Health Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 3rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 23rd were paid a $0.665 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, January 23rd. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.05%. CVS Health’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 72.68%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on CVS. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of CVS Health from $68.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on CVS Health from $80.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on CVS Health from $60.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Argus set a $77.00 price objective on CVS Health in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Wolfe Research lifted their target price on shares of CVS Health from 67.00 to 70.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $69.83.

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.