Palisade Asset Management LLC Sells 3,182 Shares of CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS)

Palisade Asset Management LLC lessened its holdings in CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) by 49.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 3,227 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock after selling 3,182 shares during the period. Palisade Asset Management LLC’s holdings in CVS Health were worth $203,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Kestra Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of CVS Health by 6.6% in the 1st quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC now owns 174,398 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $13,910,000 after purchasing an additional 10,871 shares during the last quarter. Ascent Group LLC grew its holdings in CVS Health by 503.7% during the 1st quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 17,610 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $1,405,000 after purchasing an additional 14,693 shares during the last quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI bought a new stake in CVS Health in the first quarter worth about $2,114,000. Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its position in shares of CVS Health by 4.9% during the first quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 1,892,879 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $150,976,000 after buying an additional 88,113 shares during the period. Finally, Waverly Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of CVS Health by 25.0% during the first quarter. Waverly Advisors LLC now owns 14,057 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $1,121,000 after buying an additional 2,815 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.66% of the company’s stock.

CVS Health Trading Up 1.6 %

Shares of CVS Health stock opened at $58.01 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $59.21 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $58.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $73.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.72, a PEG ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 0.55. CVS Health Co. has a 12-month low of $52.71 and a 12-month high of $83.25. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The pharmacy operator reported $1.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $95.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $92.72 billion. CVS Health had a return on equity of 10.72% and a net margin of 1.36%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.21 EPS. Analysts predict that CVS Health Co. will post 5.43 EPS for the current year.

CVS Health Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 1st. Investors of record on Monday, October 21st were issued a $0.665 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, October 21st. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.59%. CVS Health’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 67.51%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently issued reports on CVS. StockNews.com cut CVS Health from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $62.00 price target on shares of CVS Health in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of CVS Health from $75.00 to $71.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Mizuho cut their target price on shares of CVS Health from $73.00 to $66.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of CVS Health from $68.00 to $58.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, CVS Health has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $72.28.

CVS Health 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.