Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. Sells 2,022 Shares of CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS)

Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. lessened its stake in CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) by 0.7% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 305,354 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock after selling 2,022 shares during the period. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc.’s holdings in CVS Health were worth $18,034,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Jeppson Wealth Management LLC raised its position in CVS Health by 151.7% in the 2nd quarter. Jeppson Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,732 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $398,000 after purchasing an additional 4,057 shares during the last quarter. Childress Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of CVS Health by 261.0% during the 2nd quarter. Childress Capital Advisors LLC now owns 16,428 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $970,000 after acquiring an additional 11,877 shares during the last quarter. Altus Wealth Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of CVS Health during the 2nd quarter valued at $309,000. MCF Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of CVS Health by 29.2% during the 2nd quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 2,981 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $176,000 after acquiring an additional 673 shares during the last quarter. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI raised its position in shares of CVS Health by 5.6% during the 2nd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 727,522 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $42,270,000 after acquiring an additional 38,686 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.66% of the company’s stock.

CVS Health Stock Up 1.3 %

NYSE:CVS traded up $0.73 on Friday, hitting $58.80. 454,001 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 11,113,616. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $58.32 and a 200-day moving average price of $64.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.66. CVS Health Co. has a 52 week low of $52.77 and a 52 week high of $83.25. The company has a market cap of $73.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 0.52.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The pharmacy operator reported $1.83 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.73 by $0.10. CVS Health had a net margin of 1.98% and a return on equity of 12.72%. The firm had revenue of $91.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $91.41 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.21 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that CVS Health Co. will post 6.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CVS Health Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 22nd were issued a $0.665 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, July 22nd. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.52%. CVS Health’s payout ratio is 46.75%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Robert W. Baird assumed coverage on shares of CVS Health in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $61.00 target price for the company. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of CVS Health from $65.00 to $63.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of CVS Health from $101.00 to $86.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $62.00 price target on shares of CVS Health in a report on Monday, August 19th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of CVS Health from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, August 12th. Eleven 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, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $72.48.

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.