Express Scripts Stock Surges 3% After Anthem Says No Final Decision Made About 2020 Contract

Express Scripts Holding Co. shares surged 3.1% to $61.81 in morning trade Wednesday after Anthem Inc. , its largest client, said no final decision had been made with regard to a 2020 contract that Express Scripts had previously said was imperiled. Express Scripts stock dropped 10.8% in Wednesday trade after its comments about the Anthem contract, which made up nearly 20% of its revenue last year. Anthem wouldn't comment specifically about Express Scripts but President and Chief Executive Officer Joseph Swedish said that "we've not made a final decision with respect to any vendor, and have stated clearly that we've not done so and we've not ruled anyone in or out." With its Express Scripts contract due to expire at the end of 2019, Anthem issued requests for proposals in the first quarter and expects all responses to come in during the first half of this year. Though Anthem still maintains it is owed a "minimum" of $3 billion in costs -- $3 billion that Express Scripts said this week it does not have -- Swedish said "we are hopeful that we can resolve our dispute." Anthem shares surged 3.6% in morning trade to $178.61. Express Scripts shares have sunk 10.7% over the last three months, compared with a 17.2% rise in Anthem stock and a 4.2% rise in the S&P 500 .