CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) Releases Earnings Results, Misses Expectations By $0.38 EPS

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) posted its earnings results on Wednesday. The pharmacy operator reported $1.31 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.69 by ($0.38), Briefing.com reports. CVS Health had a return on equity of 15.25% and a net margin of 2.33%. The firm had revenue of $88.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $89.33 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.20 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. CVS Health updated its FY24 guidance to at least $7.00 EPS.

CVS Health Stock Down 3.4 %

Shares of NYSE CVS traded down $1.93 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $54.38. 23,485,135 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 11,432,966. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.63. CVS Health has a twelve month low of $53.70 and a twelve month high of $83.25. The company has a market cap of $68.54 billion, a PE ratio of 8.41, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.56. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $73.63 and its 200-day simple moving average is $73.50.

CVS Health Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 22nd were given a dividend of $0.665 per share. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.89%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 19th. CVS Health’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.18%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on CVS shares. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price 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. Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $66.00 price target (down from $90.00) on shares of CVS Health in a research note on Thursday. SVB Leerink reiterated a “market perform” rating and set a $60.00 price target (down previously from $87.00) on shares of CVS Health in a report on Wednesday. Mizuho reduced their price objective on CVS Health from $86.00 to $72.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their price target on CVS Health from $93.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 15th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $80.35.

Insider Transactions at CVS Health

In related news, EVP Prem S. Shah sold 29,473 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 owns 39,765 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,059,916.75. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 0.24% 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.