Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. Sells 438 Shares of CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS)

Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. reduced its position in shares of CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) by 1.0% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 42,876 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock after selling 438 shares during the quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd.’s holdings in CVS Health were worth $1,925,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in CVS. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its position in shares of CVS Health by 258.9% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 3,542 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $223,000 after buying an additional 2,555 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its position in CVS Health by 7.8% during the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 1,096,238 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $68,931,000 after purchasing an additional 79,132 shares during the period. Avestar Capital LLC bought a new position in CVS Health during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $326,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new position in shares of CVS Health in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $40,000. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its position in shares of CVS Health by 3.7% during the third quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 261,194 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $16,424,000 after buying an additional 9,418 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.66% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP James David Clark sold 7,513 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the senior vice president now owns 8,394 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $556,941.90. This represents a 47.23 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Michael F. Mahoney purchased 30,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $66.70 per share, with a total value of $2,001,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 39,356 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,625,045.20. This trade represents a 320.65 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

CVS Health Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE CVS opened at $67.16 on Thursday. CVS Health Co. has a one year low of $43.56 and a one year high of $80.75. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $61.52 and its 200-day moving average price is $57.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $84.68 billion, a PE ratio of 18.35, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.60.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The pharmacy operator reported $1.19 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 research analysts anticipate that CVS Health Co. will post 5.89 EPS for the current year.

CVS Health Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.665 per share. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.96%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 22nd. CVS Health’s payout ratio is presently 72.68%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CVS has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of CVS Health from $80.00 to $81.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of CVS Health from $71.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Argus set a $77.00 price target on CVS Health in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of CVS Health from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Wolfe Research increased their price target on CVS Health from 67.00 to 70.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, CVS Health has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $70.39.

CVS Health Company 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.