CVS Health beats 4Q profit forecasts

CVS Health Corporation (CVS) on Thursday reported fourth-quarter earnings of $1.71 billion.

The Woonsocket, Rhode Island-based company said it had profit of $1.59 per share. Earnings, adjusted for one-time gains and costs, were $1.71 per share.

The results topped Wall Street expectations. The average estimate of 21 analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for earnings of $1.67 per share.

The drugstore chain and pharmacy benefits manager posted revenue of $45.97 billion in the period, which fell short of Street forecasts. Nineteen analysts surveyed by Zacks expected $46.48 billion.

For the current quarter ending in April, CVS Health expects its per-share earnings to range from $1.07 to $1.13. Analysts surveyed by Zacks had forecast adjusted earnings per share of $1.11.

The company expects full-year earnings in the range of $5.77 to $5.93 per share.

CVS Health shares have decreased slightly more than 2 percent since the beginning of the year, while the Standard & Poor's 500 index has climbed 2.5 percent. The stock has dropped 14 percent in the last 12 months.

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This story was generated by Automated Insights (http://automatedinsights.com/ap) using data from Zacks Investment Research. Access a Zacks stock report on CVS at https://www.zacks.com/ap/CVS

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Keywords: CVS Health, Earnings Report, Priority Earnings