Short Interest in CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) Drops By 5.9%

CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) was the target of a significant decrease in short interest in the month of September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totalling 17,400,000 shares, a decrease of 5.9% from the August 31st total of 18,500,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 8,620,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.0 days. Currently, 1.4% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Cantor Fitzgerald restated a “neutral” rating and set a $62.00 target price on shares of CVS Health in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Barclays cut their price objective on CVS Health from $65.00 to $63.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $68.00 target price on shares of CVS Health in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of CVS Health from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, August 12th. Finally, Evercore ISI decreased their price objective on shares of CVS Health from $65.00 to $62.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $72.10.

CVS Health Price Performance

Shares of CVS opened at $63.45 on Monday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $58.20 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $61.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.66. CVS Health has a 1-year low of $52.77 and a 1-year high of $83.25. The stock has a market cap of $79.65 billion, a PE ratio of 10.79, a P/E/G ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 0.53.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The pharmacy operator reported $1.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.73 by $0.10. CVS Health had a return on equity of 12.72% and a net margin of 1.98%. The company had revenue of $91.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $91.41 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.21 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that CVS Health will post 6.51 EPS for the current year.

CVS Health Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, October 21st will be given a $0.665 dividend. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.19%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, October 21st. CVS Health’s dividend payout ratio is currently 46.75%.

Institutional Trading of CVS Health

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Ables Iannone Moore & Associates Inc. acquired a new position in shares of CVS Health during the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. First Community Trust NA lifted its position in shares of CVS Health by 116.2% during the 2nd quarter. First Community Trust NA now owns 562 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 302 shares during the last quarter. Creekmur Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of CVS Health in the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Steph & Co. grew its position in shares of CVS Health by 192.0% in the 1st quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 438 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 288 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ORG Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of CVS Health by 11,840.0% during the second quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 597 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 592 shares during the last quarter. 80.66% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.