Ashton Thomas Securities LLC Buys 3,391 Shares of CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS)

Ashton Thomas Securities LLC increased its stake in CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) by 9.1% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 40,829 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,391 shares during the quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC’s holdings in CVS Health were worth $2,567,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Garland Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of CVS Health by 0.3% in the 2nd quarter. Garland Capital Management Inc. now owns 60,810 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $3,591,000 after acquiring an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC grew its position in CVS Health by 7.2% in the 3rd quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 2,397 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $151,000 after purchasing an additional 162 shares during the period. Plimoth Trust Co. LLC grew its position in CVS Health by 0.4% in the 2nd quarter. Plimoth Trust Co. LLC now owns 46,637 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $2,754,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares during the period. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC grew its position in CVS Health by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 5,268 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $331,000 after purchasing an additional 178 shares during the period. Finally, Pallas Capital Advisors LLC grew its position in CVS Health by 2.5% in the 2nd quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC now owns 7,458 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $447,000 after purchasing an additional 183 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.66% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CVS has been the subject of several research reports. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $62.00 price target on shares of CVS Health in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Barclays reduced their price target 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. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on shares of CVS Health from $66.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 11th. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of CVS Health from $62.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price objective on shares of CVS Health from $64.00 to $63.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 9th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, CVS Health currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $73.00.

CVS Health Trading Down 2.7 %

Shares of CVS Health stock opened at $55.54 on Monday. CVS Health Co. has a 52-week low of $52.77 and a 52-week high of $83.25. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $59.56 and its 200 day simple moving average is $59.12. The stock has a market capitalization of $69.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.10, a P/E/G ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a current ratio of 0.80.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The pharmacy operator reported $1.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08 by $0.01. CVS Health had a return on equity of 10.72% and a net margin of 1.36%. The business had revenue of $95.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $92.72 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.21 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that CVS Health Co. will post 5.63 EPS for the current year.

CVS Health Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, October 21st were given a dividend of $0.665 per share. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.79%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, October 21st. CVS Health’s dividend payout ratio is presently 67.51%.

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.