CVS Health’s (CVS) Buy Rating Reaffirmed at Truist Financial

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS)‘s stock had its “buy” rating restated by equities researchers at Truist Financial in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday, Benzinga reports. They presently have a $66.00 price objective on the pharmacy operator’s stock, down from their prior price objective of $90.00. Truist Financial’s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 21.37% from the company’s previous close.

Several other analysts have also weighed in on CVS. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of CVS Health from $86.00 to $84.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 8th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of CVS Health from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 15th. Barclays began coverage on shares of CVS Health in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $78.00 price objective for the company. Leerink Partnrs reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of CVS Health in a research report on Monday, February 26th. Finally, SVB Leerink restated a “market perform” rating and issued a $60.00 price objective (down from $87.00) on shares of CVS Health in a report on Wednesday. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $81.72.

CVS Health Stock Performance

CVS stock traded down $1.93 during trading on Thursday, reaching $54.38. 7,174,144 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 11,232,479. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $73.63 and a 200-day simple moving average of $73.50. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. CVS Health has a twelve month low of $54.00 and a twelve month high of $83.25. The company has a market capitalization of $68.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.56.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 7th. The pharmacy operator reported $2.12 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.01 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $93.81 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $90.58 billion. CVS Health had a net margin of 2.33% and a return on equity of 15.25%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.99 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that CVS Health will post 8.31 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at CVS Health

In other CVS Health news, EVP Prem S. Shah sold 29,473 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.95, for a total transaction of $2,267,947.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 39,765 shares in the company, valued at $3,059,916.75. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in CVS. Atticus Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of CVS Health by 149.0% in the fourth quarter. Atticus Wealth Management LLC now owns 366 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 219 shares during the period. USA Financial Formulas grew its position in shares of CVS Health by 573.2% in the 4th quarter. USA Financial Formulas now owns 377 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 321 shares during the last quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC boosted its holdings in CVS Health by 111.5% in the third quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 461 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 243 shares during the last quarter. Ables Iannone Moore & Associates Inc. bought a new stake in shares of CVS Health in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Creekmur Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in CVS Health in the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. Institutional investors own 80.66% 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.