CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) Lowered to Neutral at UBS Group

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) was downgraded by analysts at UBS Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report released on Thursday, Marketbeat.com reports. They presently have a $60.00 price target on the pharmacy operator’s stock, down from their prior price target of $85.00. UBS Group’s target price would suggest a potential upside of 7.33% from the stock’s current price.

Several other research firms have also issued reports on CVS. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on CVS Health from $83.00 to $76.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 8th. StockNews.com cut shares of CVS Health from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 15th. Barclays initiated coverage on shares of CVS Health in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $78.00 price objective on the stock. Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of CVS Health from $93.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 15th. Finally, Leerink Partnrs restated an “outperform” rating on shares of CVS Health in a report on Monday, February 26th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $80.35.

CVS Health Stock Up 1.4 %

Shares of CVS traded up $0.75 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $55.90. 23,946,075 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 12,498,538. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.63. CVS Health has a 52 week low of $53.70 and a 52 week high of $83.25. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $72.77 and a 200 day simple moving average of $73.26. The company has a market cap of $70.18 billion, a PE ratio of 9.82, a P/E/G ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 0.56.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The pharmacy operator reported $1.31 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.69 by ($0.38). The company had revenue of $88.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $89.33 billion. CVS Health had a return on equity of 13.53% and a net margin of 2.03%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.20 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that CVS Health will post 7.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Prem S. Shah sold 29,473 shares of CVS Health 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 39,765 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,059,916.75. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, EVP Prem S. Shah sold 29,473 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.95, for a total value of $2,267,947.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 39,765 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,059,916.75. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Edward J. Ludwig acquired 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 2nd. The shares were bought at an average price of $53.88 per share, with a total value of $53,880.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 21,630 shares in the company, 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.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CVS Health

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of CVS. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of CVS Health in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,092,040,000. Capital International Investors lifted its stake in CVS Health by 47.4% in the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 33,691,698 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $2,660,298,000 after buying an additional 10,837,801 shares during the period. FMR LLC grew its position in shares of CVS Health by 29.1% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 27,487,238 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $1,919,159,000 after buying an additional 6,194,441 shares during the period. Pzena Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of CVS Health by 573.8% in the 1st quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 5,553,457 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $442,944,000 after acquiring an additional 4,729,207 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Clearbridge Investments LLC lifted its position in shares of CVS Health by 306.6% during the 4th quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 3,046,216 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $240,529,000 after acquiring an additional 2,297,100 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.66% of the company’s stock.

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.