Palouse Capital Management Inc. Grows Holdings in CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS)

Palouse Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) by 7.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 26,747 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,896 shares during the period. CVS Health makes up 1.5% of Palouse Capital Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest position. Palouse Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in CVS Health were worth $2,112,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cantor Fitzgerald Investment Advisor L.P grew its position in CVS Health by 92.9% during the first quarter. Cantor Fitzgerald Investment Advisor L.P now owns 377,875 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $38,245,000 after acquiring an additional 181,966 shares during the last quarter. United Bank increased its holdings in shares of CVS Health by 7.2% in the 1st quarter. United Bank now owns 18,658 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $1,888,000 after purchasing an additional 1,260 shares in the last quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P increased its holdings in CVS Health by 4,063.8% in the 1st quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 12,075 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $1,222,000 after buying an additional 11,785 shares in the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. boosted its holdings in CVS Health by 116.9% in the first quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 2,572 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $260,000 after purchasing an additional 1,386 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ergoteles LLC purchased a new stake in CVS Health during the first quarter valued at $1,551,000. Institutional investors own 80.66% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at CVS Health

In other CVS Health news, EVP Prem S. Shah sold 29,473 shares of CVS Health stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.95, for a total transaction of $2,267,947.35. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 39,765 shares in the company, valued at $3,059,916.75. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

CVS Health Stock Performance

CVS stock traded up $1.02 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $69.75. 7,771,294 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 10,854,582. The firm has a market capitalization of $87.92 billion, a PE ratio of 10.80, a P/E/G ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 0.52. The business has a 50-day moving average of $75.29 and a two-hundred day moving average of $73.70. The company has a quick ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. CVS Health Co. has a 52 week low of $64.41 and a 52 week high of $83.25.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 7th. The pharmacy operator reported $2.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.01 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $93.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $90.58 billion. CVS Health had a return on equity of 15.25% and a net margin of 2.33%. CVS Health’s quarterly revenue was up 11.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.99 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that CVS Health Co. will post 8.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CVS Health Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.665 per share. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.81%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 19th. CVS Health’s dividend payout ratio is 41.18%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CVS has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Piper Sandler increased their target price on CVS Health from $93.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 15th. HSBC initiated coverage on shares of CVS Health in a research note on Friday, December 22nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $94.00 price target on the stock. StockNews.com lowered CVS Health from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 15th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on CVS Health from $83.00 to $76.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 8th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on CVS Health from $86.00 to $84.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 8th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, CVS Health currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $89.44.

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.