Bridgewater Advisors Inc. Makes New Investment in CVS Health Corporation (NYSE:CVS)

Bridgewater Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of CVS Health Corporation (NYSE:CVS) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 3,793 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock, valued at approximately $247,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Whitebox Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of CVS Health during the 4th quarter worth approximately $249,000. Cerity Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of CVS Health by 25.0% during the first quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 648,266 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $43,920,000 after purchasing an additional 129,535 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in shares of CVS Health by 2.1% in the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 8,981,262 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $608,481,000 after purchasing an additional 183,813 shares in the last quarter. Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd. Can purchased a new position in CVS Health during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $121,742,000. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC grew its stake in CVS Health by 7.3% in the 4th quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 4,290,953 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $192,617,000 after buying an additional 293,406 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.66% of the company’s stock.

CVS Health Price Performance

CVS stock opened at $63.34 on Friday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $64.80 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $62.76. The firm has a market capitalization of $80.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a quick ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. CVS Health Corporation has a 52 week low of $43.56 and a 52 week high of $72.51.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The pharmacy operator reported $2.25 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.62 by $0.63. The business had revenue of $94.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $93.07 billion. CVS Health had a net margin of 1.39% and a return on equity of 10.59%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.31 EPS. Analysts anticipate that CVS Health Corporation will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CVS Health Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 22nd will be paid a $0.665 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 22nd. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.20%. CVS Health’s dividend payout ratio is currently 63.48%.

Insider Buying and Selling at CVS Health

In other news, Director Guy P. Sansone purchased 1,570 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 5th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $63.70 per share, for a total transaction of $100,009.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 12,007 shares in the company, valued at $764,845.90. This represents a 15.04% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 1.22% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CVS has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of CVS Health from $70.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of CVS Health from $51.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $84.00 price objective (up from $76.00) on shares of CVS Health in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of CVS Health from $74.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 30th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded CVS Health from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, CVS Health currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $75.06.

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.