CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) Trading Down 1.7% – Should You Sell?

CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) shares were down 1.7% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $50.63 and last traded at $51.25. Approximately 3,420,566 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 75% from the average daily volume of 13,702,923 shares. The stock had previously closed at $52.14.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CVS has been the topic of several research reports. Mizuho dropped their price target on CVS Health from $73.00 to $66.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of CVS Health from $75.00 to $71.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of CVS Health from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on shares of CVS Health from $68.00 to $58.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on CVS Health from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $68.71.

CVS Health Stock Down 0.1 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $65.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.20, a PEG ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 0.59. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $51.68 and its 200-day moving average price is $56.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.59.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The pharmacy operator reported $1.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.08 by $0.01. CVS Health had a return on equity of 10.72% and a net margin of 1.36%. The company had revenue of $95.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $92.72 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.21 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that CVS Health Co. will post 5.22 earnings per share for the current year.

CVS Health Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, January 23rd will be paid a dividend of $0.665 per share. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.11%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 23rd. CVS Health’s dividend payout ratio is presently 67.51%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CVS Health

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC increased its stake in CVS Health by 31.8% in the 2nd quarter. Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC now owns 4,007 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $236,000 after purchasing an additional 967 shares in the last quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. acquired a new stake in shares of CVS Health during the second quarter valued at approximately $1,140,000. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of CVS Health by 11.0% in the 2nd quarter. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. now owns 4,722 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $279,000 after acquiring an additional 467 shares in the last quarter. Elkhorn Partners Limited Partnership purchased a new position in CVS Health during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $41,000. Finally, Marathon Trading Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in CVS Health during the 2nd quarter valued at $1,412,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.