CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) Downgraded to Sell Rating by StockNews.com

StockNews.com lowered shares of CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research note issued to investors on Thursday.

Several other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on CVS Health from $61.00 to $60.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 4th. Mizuho reduced their target price on shares of CVS Health from $73.00 to $66.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price target on shares of CVS Health from $64.00 to $63.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Barclays reduced 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 report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, TD Cowen upgraded CVS Health from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $59.00 to $85.00 in a research note on Friday, October 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $72.44.

CVS Health Stock Down 2.5 %

CVS stock traded down $1.40 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $53.69. 6,314,564 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 11,291,782. CVS Health has a 52 week low of $52.71 and a 52 week high of $83.25. The company has a market cap of $67.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.59, a P/E/G ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 0.55. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $59.32 and its 200-day moving average price is $58.76. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The pharmacy operator reported $1.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $95.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $92.72 billion. CVS Health had a net margin of 1.36% and a return on equity of 10.72%. The firm’s revenue was up 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.21 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that CVS Health will post 5.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CVS Health Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 1st. Investors of record on Monday, October 21st were issued a $0.665 dividend. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.95%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, October 21st. CVS Health’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 67.51%.

Institutional Trading of CVS Health

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Morse Asset Management Inc bought a new stake in CVS Health during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $409,000. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of CVS Health by 5.9% in the third quarter. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC now owns 57,470 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $3,537,000 after purchasing an additional 3,206 shares during the period. Investment Management Corp of Ontario raised its position in shares of CVS Health by 49.0% in the third quarter. Investment Management Corp of Ontario now owns 41,636 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $2,618,000 after buying an additional 13,700 shares in the last quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. bought a new stake in CVS Health during the third quarter valued at $7,233,000. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its stake in CVS Health by 370.6% in the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 760,903 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $47,825,000 after acquiring an additional 599,200 shares during the last quarter. 80.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.