On the same day CVS Health Corp.
CVS,
announced a $10.6 billion deal to buy Oak Street Health Inc.
OSH,
the health care services and drug store chain reported a big fourth-quarter revenue beat. The stock rose 1.8% in premarket trading. Net income rose to $2.30 billion, or $1.75 a share, from $1.31 billion, or 98 cents a share, in the year-ago period. Excluding nonrecurring items, adjusted earnings per share of $1.99 topped the FactSet consensus of $1.92. Total revenue grew 9.5% to $83.85 billion, well above the FactSet consensus of $76.32 billion, has health care benefits revenue increased 11.3% to $23.03 billion, pharmacy services revenue rose 11.1% to $43.75 billion and and retail/long-term care (LTC) revenue edged up 4.0% to $28.18 billion. Prescriptions filled rose 0.8%, or increased 4.0% if excluding the impact of COVID-19 vaccinations. For 2023, CVS said it expects adjusted EPS of $8.70 to $8.90, which surrounded the FactSet consensus of $8.84. The stock has dropped 15.4% over the past three months through Tuesday, while the S&P 500
SPX,
has gained 8.8%.
Credit: marketwatch.com