KRS Capital Management LLC Decreases Stock Position in CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS)

KRS Capital Management LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of CVS Health Co. (NYSE:CVS) by 14.6% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 2,530 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock after selling 434 shares during the quarter. KRS Capital Management LLC’s holdings in CVS Health were worth $202,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in CVS. Riverpoint Wealth Management Holdings LLC purchased a new stake in CVS Health in the 4th quarter worth about $218,000. Canoe Financial LP grew its stake in CVS Health by 95.1% in the 4th quarter. Canoe Financial LP now owns 1,762,629 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $139,177,000 after acquiring an additional 859,134 shares in the last quarter. Meritage Portfolio Management grew its stake in CVS Health by 30.6% in the 4th quarter. Meritage Portfolio Management now owns 66,322 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $5,237,000 after acquiring an additional 15,548 shares in the last quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC grew its stake in CVS Health by 17.5% in the 3rd quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 457,267 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $31,926,000 after acquiring an additional 68,005 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Steph & Co. grew its stake in CVS Health by 192.0% in the 1st quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 438 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 288 shares in the last quarter. 80.66% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

CVS Health Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE CVS traded up $0.70 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $59.06. The company had a trading volume of 14,343,538 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,322,786. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $59.56 and its 200 day simple moving average is $70.19. The stock has a market cap of $74.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.38, a P/E/G ratio of 0.56 and a beta of 0.53. CVS Health Co. has a 1 year low of $52.77 and a 1 year high of $83.25. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The pharmacy operator reported $1.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.69 by ($0.38). The company had revenue of $88.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $89.33 billion. CVS Health had a return on equity of 13.53% and a net margin of 2.03%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.20 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that CVS Health Co. will post 7.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other CVS Health news, Director Edward J. Ludwig bought 1,000 shares of CVS Health stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 2nd. The stock was purchased at an average price of $53.88 per share, with a total value of $53,880.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 21,630 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,165,424.40. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CVS has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of CVS Health from $78.00 to $63.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Mizuho dropped their price objective on shares of CVS Health from $86.00 to $72.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. TD Cowen downgraded shares of CVS Health from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $99.00 to $59.00 in a research note on Tuesday, May 7th. SVB Leerink reiterated a “market perform” rating and set a $60.00 price objective (down from $87.00) on shares of CVS Health in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Finally, Leerink Partnrs downgraded shares of CVS Health from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, CVS Health presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $75.05.

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.