Russell Investments Group Ltd. Decreases Stake in CVS Health Corporation $CVS

Russell Investments Group Ltd. reduced its stake in shares of CVS Health Corporation (NYSE:CVS) by 8.7% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 3,151,289 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock after selling 301,999 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd.’s holdings in CVS Health were worth $217,354,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Rhenman & Partners Asset Management AB grew its stake in CVS Health by 25.2% during the 2nd quarter. Rhenman & Partners Asset Management AB now owns 295,362 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $20,374,000 after purchasing an additional 59,500 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners acquired a new stake in shares of CVS Health during the second quarter worth about $3,324,000. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. boosted its position in CVS Health by 5.4% in the second quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 24,555 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $1,694,000 after buying an additional 1,266 shares during the last quarter. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co increased its holdings in CVS Health by 3.1% in the 2nd quarter. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co now owns 154,476 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $10,656,000 after buying an additional 4,693 shares during the period. Finally, Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in CVS Health by 6,798.1% during the 2nd quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 7,243 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $500,000 after buying an additional 7,138 shares during the last quarter. 80.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

CVS Health Stock Performance

Shares of CVS stock opened at $78.48 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $99.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 206.54, a P/E/G ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 0.60. CVS Health Corporation has a 12-month low of $43.56 and a 12-month high of $85.15. The business’s 50 day moving average is $78.31 and its two-hundred day moving average is $70.46. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The pharmacy operator reported $1.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.36 by $0.24. The firm had revenue of $102.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $98.85 billion. CVS Health had a return on equity of 11.45% and a net margin of 0.12%.The business’s revenue was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.09 EPS. CVS Health has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.550-6.650 EPS. Analysts expect that CVS Health Corporation will post 5.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CVS Health Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, November 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, October 23rd were given a dividend of $0.665 per share. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.4%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 23rd. CVS Health’s dividend payout ratio is 700.00%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on CVS shares. Argus increased their price objective on shares of CVS Health from $80.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 4th. Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of CVS Health in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Baird R W raised CVS Health from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 14th. Zacks Research lowered CVS Health from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, September 8th. Finally, Mizuho boosted their price target on CVS Health from $76.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-one have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $89.41.

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.