Nichols & Pratt Advisers LLP MA Trims Stake in CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS)

Nichols & Pratt Advisers LLP MA reduced its position in CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) by 27.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 109,939 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock after selling 41,026 shares during the period. Nichols & Pratt Advisers LLP MA’s holdings in CVS Health were worth $4,935,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in CVS. Widmann Financial Services Inc. increased its position in CVS Health by 1.8% during the 3rd 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 period. Manchester Capital Management LLC increased its position in CVS Health by 4.8% during the 4th 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 period. Rogco LP increased its position in CVS Health by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. Rogco LP now owns 6,752 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $303,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares during the period. United Asset Strategies Inc. grew its holdings in shares of CVS Health by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. United Asset Strategies Inc. now owns 9,217 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $580,000 after acquiring an additional 212 shares during the period. Finally, Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. grew its holdings in shares of CVS Health by 9.8% in the 3rd quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 2,575 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $163,000 after acquiring an additional 229 shares during the period. 80.66% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

CVS Health Trading Up 2.1 %

Shares of CVS Health stock opened at $65.85 on Friday. CVS Health Co. has a fifty-two week low of $43.56 and a fifty-two week high of $80.75. The firm has a market cap of $83.02 billion, a PE ratio of 17.99, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.61. The business’s fifty day moving average is $54.33 and its two-hundred day moving average is $56.46. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) last issued its quarterly 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 return on equity of 9.11% and a net margin of 1.24%. Analysts anticipate that CVS Health Co. will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current year.

CVS Health Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, January 23rd were given a $0.665 dividend. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.04%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 23rd. CVS Health’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 72.68%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Wolfe Research upped their price target on CVS Health from 67.00 to 70.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Edward Jones upgraded CVS Health from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on CVS Health from $80.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Barclays upped their price target on CVS Health from $71.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Argus set a $77.00 price target on CVS Health in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $69.83.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Michael F. Mahoney bought 30,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $66.70 per share, with a total value of $2,001,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 39,356 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,625,045.20. This represents a 320.65 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.24% 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.