Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC Purchases 650,832 Shares of CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS)

Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) by 29.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,848,986 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 650,832 shares during the period. CVS Health comprises 0.9% of Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 22nd largest holding. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC owned approximately 0.23% of CVS Health worth $127,891,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in CVS. TD Private Client Wealth LLC increased its stake in shares of CVS Health by 28.7% in the 3rd quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 46,938 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $2,951,000 after purchasing an additional 10,465 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in CVS Health by 4.8% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,434,476 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $90,200,000 after acquiring an additional 66,244 shares during the last quarter. Hall Laurie J Trustee lifted its holdings in shares of CVS Health by 25,484.4% in the fourth quarter. Hall Laurie J Trustee now owns 11,513 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $517,000 after acquiring an additional 11,468 shares during the last quarter. B&D White Capital Company LLC acquired a new stake in shares of CVS Health in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $417,000. Finally, TOMS Capital Investment Management LP bought a new stake in shares of CVS Health during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $121,987,000. 80.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

CVS Health Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CVS opened at $67.13 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $62.12 and its 200-day moving average price is $57.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $84.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.34, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.54. CVS Health Co. has a 1-year low of $43.56 and a 1-year high of $79.98.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The pharmacy operator reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.89 by $0.30. CVS Health had a return on equity of 9.11% and a net margin of 1.24%. Equities research analysts anticipate that CVS Health Co. will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CVS Health Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 22nd will be paid a $0.665 dividend. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.96%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 22nd. CVS Health’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 72.68%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CVS has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of CVS Health from $80.00 to $81.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Leerink Partners upgraded CVS Health from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $55.00 to $75.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Argus set a $77.00 price target on CVS Health in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Wolfe Research upped their price objective on CVS Health from 67.00 to 70.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. 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 report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, CVS Health has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $70.39.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP James David Clark sold 7,513 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.35, for a total value of $498,487.55. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 8,394 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $556,941.90. This represents a 47.23 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Michael F. Mahoney acquired 30,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $66.70 per share, for a total transaction of $2,001,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 39,356 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,625,045.20. The trade was a 320.65 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

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.