Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund Grows Holdings in CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS)

Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund increased its position in shares of CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) by 13.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 42,150 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,904 shares during the quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund’s holdings in CVS Health were worth $1,892,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Integrated Advisors Network LLC boosted its holdings in CVS Health by 0.7% during the third quarter. Integrated Advisors Network LLC now owns 27,625 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $1,737,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Widmann Financial Services Inc. boosted its holdings in CVS Health by 1.8% during the third quarter. Widmann Financial Services Inc. now owns 11,506 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $724,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC boosted its holdings in CVS Health by 7.8% during the third quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC now owns 2,777 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $175,000 after purchasing an additional 202 shares during the last quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in CVS Health by 4.8% during the fourth quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 4,457 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $200,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rogco LP boosted its stake in CVS Health by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Rogco LP now owns 6,752 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $303,000 after acquiring an additional 210 shares during the last quarter. 80.66% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

CVS Health Stock Performance

CVS Health stock opened at $65.47 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $51.51 and its 200 day simple moving average is $56.07. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $82.39 billion, a PE ratio of 16.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.60 and a beta of 0.61. CVS Health Co. has a 1-year low of $43.56 and a 1-year high of $80.75.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The pharmacy operator reported $1.19 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.89 by $0.30. CVS Health had a net margin of 1.36% and a return on equity of 10.72%. As a group, analysts expect that CVS Health Co. will post 5.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CVS Health Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, January 23rd were issued a dividend of $0.665 per share. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.06%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, January 23rd. CVS Health’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 67.51%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Mizuho dropped 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 note on Thursday, October 24th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price 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. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of CVS Health from $68.00 to $73.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of CVS Health from $80.00 to $81.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of CVS Health from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $66.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, CVS Health has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $70.00.

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.