Exeter Financial LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS)

Exeter Financial LLC boosted its stake in shares of CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 45,564 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock after buying an additional 1,040 shares during the period. Exeter Financial LLC’s holdings in CVS Health were worth $2,865,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of CVS. Deerfield Management Company L.P. Series C purchased a new position in shares of CVS Health in the 2nd quarter worth $57,584,000. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC lifted its holdings in CVS Health by 27.9% during the 2nd quarter. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC now owns 665,451 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $39,302,000 after buying an additional 145,158 shares in the last quarter. Steph & Co. lifted its holdings in CVS Health by 192.0% during the 1st quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 438 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 288 shares in the last quarter. Douglas Lane & Associates LLC raised its holdings in shares of CVS Health by 1.6% in the 1st quarter. Douglas Lane & Associates LLC now owns 1,084,256 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $86,480,000 after purchasing an additional 16,840 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State of Tennessee Treasury Department raised its holdings in shares of CVS Health by 10.4% in the 4th quarter. State of Tennessee Treasury Department now owns 624,817 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $49,336,000 after purchasing an additional 58,836 shares in the last quarter. 80.66% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

CVS Health Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE:CVS opened at $65.26 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $58.60 and its 200 day moving average price is $61.34. The stock has a market cap of $81.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 0.54. CVS Health Co. has a fifty-two week low of $52.77 and a fifty-two week high of $83.25. The company has a quick ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The pharmacy operator reported $1.83 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.73 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $91.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $91.41 billion. CVS Health had a net margin of 1.98% and a return on equity of 12.72%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.21 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that CVS Health Co. will post 6.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CVS Health Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 1st. Investors of record on Monday, October 21st will be given a $0.665 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, October 21st. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.08%. CVS Health’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.75%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on CVS. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of CVS Health from $65.00 to $63.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their target price on shares of CVS Health from $64.00 to $63.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 9th. TD Cowen raised shares of CVS Health from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $59.00 to $85.00 in a report on Friday. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $62.00 price objective on shares of CVS Health in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of CVS Health from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, CVS Health presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $73.40.

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.