Fifth Third Bancorp Increases Stock Holdings in CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS)

Fifth Third Bancorp grew its position in CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) by 4.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 169,749 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock after buying an additional 7,410 shares during the quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp’s holdings in CVS Health were worth $11,500,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in CVS Health in the 4th quarter valued at about $839,574,000. Capital World Investors lifted its position in CVS Health by 26.6% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 61,039,777 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $2,739,927,000 after acquiring an additional 12,819,148 shares in the last quarter. Davis Selected Advisers increased its holdings in CVS Health by 2,998.1% during the 4th quarter. Davis Selected Advisers now owns 11,385,950 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $511,115,000 after purchasing an additional 11,018,438 shares during the last quarter. Dodge & Cox increased its holdings in CVS Health by 11.2% during the 4th quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 70,105,899 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $3,147,054,000 after purchasing an additional 7,075,209 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pzena Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in CVS Health by 49.3% during the 4th quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 19,610,579 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $880,319,000 after purchasing an additional 6,475,271 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.66% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at CVS Health

In other CVS Health news, Director Guy P. Sansone bought 1,570 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 5th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $63.70 per share, for a total transaction of $100,009.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 12,007 shares in the company, valued at $764,845.90. This trade represents a 15.04% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 1.22% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

CVS Health Stock Up 1.6%

Shares of CVS Health stock opened at $67.42 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $65.15 and its 200-day moving average is $60.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $85.29 billion, a PE ratio of 18.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.56. 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 Co. has a 12-month low of $43.56 and a 12-month high of $72.51.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The pharmacy operator reported $2.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.62 by $0.63. The company had revenue of $94.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $93.07 billion. CVS Health had a return on equity of 9.11% and a net margin of 1.24%. CVS Health’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.31 earnings per share. Equities 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 Thursday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 22nd were given a $0.665 dividend. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 22nd. CVS Health’s payout ratio is currently 63.48%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CVS has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of CVS Health in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Wall Street Zen upgraded CVS Health from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of CVS Health in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Argus set a $77.00 price target on CVS Health in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their price target on CVS Health from $72.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $74.75.

CVS Health Company 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.