CVS Health Corp. · CVS · FY2024 Q4 · Calendar Q1 2025
CVS outlines Aetna recovery while medical costs remain the key risk
The supplied analysis supports a measured recovery case for CVS: Aetna improvement, pricing initiatives, biosimilars, and cost efficiencies could support performance, but medical-cost trends, regulatory changes, and leverage leave the outlook conditional.
Earnings scorecard
Reported versus consensusMarket reaction
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Transcript intelligence
What changed
The current analysis shifts the focus toward execution of the Aetna turnaround and maintained 2025 guidance. It adds reported priorities around extending CostVantage, expanding biosimilars, using AI and digital tools, and executing store optimization, while retaining concerns about medical costs and regulation.
Guidance delta
Management maintained 2025 adjusted EPS guidance of $5.75-$6.00; the supplied analysis identifies medical cost trends as the key upside variable.
Key takeaways
- The supplied analysis describes progress in the Aetna turnaround, with a 3-5% Medicare Advantage margin target.
- TrueCost and CostVantage remain central to pharmacy-pricing transparency and margin improvement.
- Biosimilar adoption, including Humira conversions, is presented as a savings and growth driver.
- Capital management includes a $2 billion cost-efficiency program, continued dividends, and leverage of 4.7x.
Management priorities
- Restore Aetna margins through benefit design and cost-trend management.
- Extend CostVantage to Medicare and Medicaid contracts by 2026.
- Expand biosimilars, digital health tools, and the store-footprint optimization plan.
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Analyst 52W Price Targets
Latest persisted target per named analyst; persisted current price from FN2's market snapshot as of Oct 25, 2026. Not an FN2 forecast.
Firm-level rating actions
FMP grade actions identify the grading firm, not a named analyst.
| Firm | Rating | Prior rating | Action | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Leerink Partners | Outperform | Outperform | Maintain | Oct 12, 2026 |
| UBS | Buy | Buy | Maintain | Sep 3, 2026 |
| Argus Research | Buy | Buy | Maintain | Aug 19, 2026 |
| JP Morgan | Overweight | Overweight | Maintain | Aug 12, 2026 |
| Evercore ISI Group | Outperform | Outperform | Maintain | Aug 6, 2026 |
| Barclays | Overweight | Overweight | Maintain | Aug 6, 2026 |
| Truist Securities | Buy | Buy | Maintain | Jul 14, 2026 |
| Wells Fargo | Overweight | Overweight | Maintain | Jul 13, 2026 |
| RBC Capital | Outperform | Outperform | Maintain | Jul 9, 2026 |
| Cantor Fitzgerald | Overweight | Overweight | Maintain | Jul 7, 2026 |
| B of A Securities | Buy | Buy | Maintain | Jun 23, 2026 |
| Mizuho | Outperform | Outperform | Maintain | Jun 8, 2026 |
| Morgan Stanley | Overweight | Overweight | Maintain | Jun 4, 2026 |
| Bernstein | Outperform | Outperform | Maintain | May 13, 2026 |
| TD Cowen | Buy | Buy | Maintain | May 11, 2026 |
| Baird | Outperform | Outperform | Maintain | Apr 15, 2026 |
| Piper Sandler | Overweight | Overweight | Maintain | Mar 31, 2026 |
| Jefferies | Buy | Buy | Maintain | Jun 30, 2025 |
| Deutsche Bank | Buy | Hold | Upgrade | Dec 3, 2024 |
| Goldman Sachs | Buy | Buy | Maintain | May 2, 2024 |
| Wolfe Research | Outperform | Peer Perform | Upgrade | Sep 12, 2023 |
| Edward Jones | Hold | Buy | Downgrade | Aug 18, 2023 |
| Raymond James | Outperform | Outperform | Maintain | Aug 4, 2023 |
| Credit Suisse | Outperform | Outperform | Maintain | May 8, 2023 |
| Tigress Financial | Buy | Buy | Maintain | Dec 23, 2021 |
| BMO Capital | Market Perform | Market Perform | Maintain | May 19, 2021 |
| Guggenheim | Neutral | Buy | Downgrade | Mar 17, 2021 |
| SVB Leerink | Market Perform | Market Perform | Maintain | Dec 14, 2020 |
| Citigroup | Buy | Buy | Maintain | May 7, 2020 |
| SunTrust Robinson Humphrey | Buy | Buy | Maintain | Apr 13, 2020 |
| CFRA | Strong Buy | Strong Buy | Maintain | Feb 13, 2020 |
| Citi | Buy | Buy | Maintain | Nov 7, 2019 |
| Bank of America | Buy | Buy | Maintain | Sep 12, 2019 |
| Oppenheimer | Perform | Outperform | Downgrade | Apr 15, 2019 |
| Leerink Swann | Outperform | Outperform | Maintain | Feb 9, 2018 |
| Needham | Buy | Hold | Upgrade | Nov 10, 2017 |
| Loop Capital | Hold | Hold | Maintain | Nov 7, 2017 |
| Cowen & Co. | Outperform | Outperform | Maintain | Jun 10, 2015 |
| FBR Capital | Outperform | Outperform | Maintain | Nov 5, 2014 |
| ISI Group | Strong Buy | Buy | Upgrade | Jan 22, 2014 |
| Macquarie | Outperform | Neutral | Upgrade | Dec 14, 2012 |
Named analyst price targets
Upside is calculated against the persisted current price $93.47. FMP does not supply a rating on these named-analyst rows.
| Firm | Analyst | 52W target | Price when posted | Upside | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Leerink Partners | Analyst unavailable | $112 | $86.16 | +19.8% | Oct 12, 2026 |
| Piper Sandler | Analyst unavailable | $112 | $93.04 | +19.8% | Sep 9, 2026 |
| UBS | Analyst unavailable | $118 | $97.23 | +26.2% | Sep 3, 2026 |
| Argus Research | Analyst unavailable | $114 | $95.58 | +22.0% | Aug 19, 2026 |
| Robert W. Baird | Michael Ha | $107 | $96.96 | +14.5% | Aug 6, 2026 |
| UBS | Kevin Caliendo | $126 | $99.12 | +34.8% | Aug 6, 2026 |
| Barclays | Analyst unavailable | $108 | $99.12 | +15.5% | Aug 6, 2026 |
| UBS | Analyst unavailable | $122 | $107.85 | +30.5% | Jul 24, 2026 |
| Truist Financial | David MacDonald | $118 | $105.9 | +26.2% | Jul 14, 2026 |
| Wells Fargo | Analyst unavailable | $123 | $104.15 | +31.6% | Jul 13, 2026 |
| RBC Capital | Analyst unavailable | $113 | $104.83 | +20.9% | Jul 9, 2026 |
| Cantor Fitzgerald | Analyst unavailable | $110 | $102.08 | +17.7% | Jul 7, 2026 |
| HSBC | Analyst unavailable | $103 | $102.28 | +10.2% | Jul 6, 2026 |
| Mizuho Securities | Analyst unavailable | $115 | $95.93 | +23.0% | Jun 8, 2026 |
| Morgan Stanley | Analyst unavailable | $111 | $91.37 | +18.8% | Jun 4, 2026 |
| Truist Financial | Analyst unavailable | $108 | $90.98 | +15.5% | Jun 1, 2026 |
| Piper Sandler | Jessica Tassan | $113 | $90.98 | +20.9% | Jun 1, 2026 |
| Barclays | Andrew Mok | $106 | $91.63 | +13.4% | May 26, 2026 |
| Mizuho Securities | Analyst unavailable | $110 | $94.18 | +17.7% | May 20, 2026 |
| Morgan Stanley | Analyst unavailable | $106 | $97.85 | +13.4% | May 14, 2026 |
| Bernstein | Analyst unavailable | $106 | $95.15 | +13.4% | May 13, 2026 |
| RBC Capital | Analyst unavailable | $107 | $86.56 | +14.5% | May 7, 2026 |
| Deutsche Bank | Analyst unavailable | $92 | $87.46 | -1.6% | May 7, 2026 |
| Truist Financial | Analyst unavailable | $102 | $87.04 | +9.1% | May 7, 2026 |
| Barclays | Andrew Mok | $101 | $86.86 | +8.1% | May 7, 2026 |
| Robert W. Baird | Analyst unavailable | $94 | $77.62 | +0.6% | Apr 15, 2026 |
| Leerink Partners | Michael Cherny | $98 | $79.49 | +4.8% | Mar 5, 2026 |
| Argus Research | Analyst unavailable | $90 | $73.2 | -3.7% | Jan 28, 2026 |
| Bernstein | Analyst unavailable | $91 | $80.56 | -2.6% | Jan 6, 2026 |
| Bernstein | Analyst unavailable | $87 | $80.84 | -6.9% | Dec 12, 2025 |
| Mizuho Securities | Ann Hynes | $95 | $79.05 | +1.6% | Dec 10, 2025 |
| Robert W. Baird | Analyst unavailable | $92 | $78.24 | -1.6% | Dec 10, 2025 |
| Piper Sandler | Jessica Tassan | $101 | $78.24 | +8.1% | Dec 10, 2025 |
| Morgan Stanley | Analyst unavailable | $93 | $78.24 | -0.5% | Dec 10, 2025 |
| Barclays | Analyst unavailable | $93 | $78.24 | -0.5% | Dec 10, 2025 |
| UBS | Kevin Caliendo | $97 | $78.24 | +3.8% | Dec 10, 2025 |
| Truist Financial | Analyst unavailable | $100 | $78.24 | +7.0% | Dec 10, 2025 |
| Bernstein | Analyst unavailable | $86 | $76.75 | -8.0% | Dec 4, 2025 |
| RBC Capital | Analyst unavailable | $93 | $77.56 | -0.5% | Oct 30, 2025 |
| UBS | Analyst unavailable | $96 | $81.07 | +2.7% | Oct 24, 2025 |
| Truist Financial | David MacDonald | $92 | $79.26 | -1.6% | Oct 14, 2025 |
| Morgan Stanley | Erin Wright | $89 | $78.82 | -4.8% | Oct 14, 2025 |
| Goldman Sachs | Analyst unavailable | $91 | $78.44 | -2.6% | Oct 14, 2025 |
| Mizuho Securities | Ann Hynes | $88 | $76.93 | -5.9% | Oct 9, 2025 |
| Wells Fargo | Analyst unavailable | $103 | $76.84 | +10.2% | Oct 7, 2025 |
| Barclays | Andrew Mok | $87 | $73.32 | -6.9% | Sep 4, 2025 |
| UBS | Kevin Caliendo | $79 | $68.6 | -15.5% | Aug 18, 2025 |
| Robert W. Baird | Michael Ha | $82 | $66.58 | -12.3% | Aug 14, 2025 |
| Barclays | Andrew Mok | $79 | $63.6 | -15.5% | Jun 2, 2025 |
| Argus Research | Analyst unavailable | $77 | $65.57 | -17.6% | Feb 18, 2025 |
| Deutsche Bank | George Hill | $66 | $59.08 | -29.4% | Dec 3, 2024 |
| Wells Fargo | Stephen Baxter | $66 | $57.11 | -29.4% | Nov 18, 2024 |
| Mizuho Securities | Ann Hynes | $66 | $57.04 | -29.4% | Oct 24, 2024 |
| Truist Financial | David MacDonald | $76 | $58.2 | -18.7% | Oct 21, 2024 |
| Piper Sandler | Jessica Tassan | $72 | $59.15 | -23.0% | Oct 21, 2024 |
| Barclays | Andrew Mok | $82 | $66.63 | -12.3% | Oct 10, 2024 |
| Deutsche Bank | George Hill | $63 | $57.85 | -32.6% | Aug 8, 2024 |
| J.P. Morgan | Lisa Gill | $86 | $58.58 | -8.0% | Jun 28, 2024 |
| Barclays | Andrew Mok | $65 | $61.01 | -30.5% | Jun 20, 2024 |
| RBC Capital | Anton Hie | $68 | $56.31 | -27.2% | May 2, 2024 |
| Piper Sandler | Jessica Tassan | $94 | $77.4 | +0.6% | Mar 15, 2024 |
| Morgan Stanley | Erin Wright | $100 | $73.76 | +7.0% | Dec 12, 2023 |
| Truist Financial | David Macdonald | $98 | $70.52 | +4.8% | Sep 13, 2023 |
| Wolfe Research | Justin Lake | $80 | $70.52 | -14.4% | Sep 12, 2023 |
| Truist Financial | David Macdonald | $103 | $71.27 | +10.2% | Jul 12, 2023 |
| Morgan Stanley | Analyst unavailable | $120 | $89.18 | +28.4% | Jan 13, 2023 |
| Wells Fargo | Analyst unavailable | $101 | $92.91 | +8.1% | Jan 3, 2023 |
| Evercore ISI | Analyst unavailable | $100 | $93.19 | +7.0% | Jan 3, 2023 |
| Morgan Stanley | Analyst unavailable | $119 | $100.22 | +27.3% | Nov 23, 2022 |
| Evercore ISI | Analyst unavailable | $125 | $100.52 | +33.7% | Sep 7, 2022 |
| Mizuho Securities | Analyst unavailable | $120 | $106.39 | +28.4% | Aug 15, 2022 |
| Deutsche Bank | George Hill | $120 | $106.39 | +28.4% | Aug 14, 2022 |
| Credit Suisse | Analyst unavailable | $117 | $102.26 | +25.2% | Aug 8, 2022 |
| UBS | Analyst unavailable | $127 | $103.14 | +35.9% | Aug 4, 2022 |
| Deutsche Bank | Analyst unavailable | $113 | $97.73 | +20.9% | May 5, 2022 |
| Tigress Financial | Ivan Feinseth | $125 | $104.45 | +33.7% | Apr 11, 2022 |
| Deutsche Bank | George Hill | $110 | $102.13 | +17.7% | Feb 21, 2022 |
| BMO Capital | Matt Borsch | $120 | $104.24 | +28.4% | Feb 13, 2022 |
| Goldman Sachs | Nathan Rich | $121 | $104.79 | +29.5% | Feb 9, 2022 |
| RBC Capital | Ben Hendrix | $119 | $104.79 | +27.3% | Feb 9, 2022 |
| Jefferies | Brian Tanquilut | $120 | $102.39 | +28.4% | Jan 20, 2022 |
| Bank of America Securities | Michael Cherny | $117 | $106.22 | +25.2% | Jan 16, 2022 |
| Bernstein | Lance Wilkes | $116 | $105.48 | +24.1% | Jan 11, 2022 |
| Wells Fargo | Steve Baxter | $111 | $102.04 | +18.8% | Jan 6, 2022 |
| Truist Financial | David S Macdonald | $124 | $105.25 | +32.7% | Jan 5, 2022 |
| Morgan Stanley | Ricky Goldwasser | $125 | $98.37 | +33.7% | Dec 13, 2021 |
| Cowen & Co. | Charles Rhyee | $114 | $98.33 | +22.0% | Dec 10, 2021 |
| Credit Suisse | A.J. Rice | $120 | $98.33 | +28.4% | Dec 10, 2021 |
| Seaport Global | Joseph France | $110 | $88.31 | +17.7% | Dec 1, 2021 |
| UBS | Kevin Caliendo | $106 | $93.71 | +13.4% | Nov 11, 2021 |
| Cantor Fitzgerald | Steven Halper | $115 | $95.83 | +23.0% | Nov 3, 2021 |
| Wolfe Research | Justin Lake | $93 | $87.69 | -0.5% | May 19, 2021 |
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Start freeCompany context
Snapshot as of publicationCVS Health Corp. is a health solutions company, which engages in the provision of healthcare services. It operates through the following segments: Health Care Benefits, Health Services, Pharmacy and Consumer Wellness, and Corporate and Other. The Health Care Benefits segment operates as a health care benefits provider. The Health Services segment offers a full range of PBM solutions, delivers health care services in its medical clinics, virtually, and in the home. The Pharmacy & Consumer Wellness segment dispenses prescriptions in its retail pharmacies and through its infusion operations. The Corporate and Other Segment is involved in management and administrative expenses. The company was founded by Stanley P. Goldstein and Ralph Hoagland in 1963 and is headquartered in Woonsocket, RI.
Historical context
All CVS earningsHealthcare peers this season
Latest reports in the same sector| Company | Quarter | EPS surprise | Market move | Headline |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| RDY Dr. Reddy's Laboratories Limited | FY2027 Q2 · Calendar Q4 2026 | +24.0% | -0.2% | Dr. Reddy’s: margins improve as semaglutide rollout advances |
| DGX Quest Diagnostics Incorporated | FY2026 Q3 · Calendar Q4 2026 | +4.5% | +1.8% | Quest Diagnostics: growth broadens, but PAMA remains a headwind |
| ARGX argenx SE | FY2026 Q3 · Calendar Q4 2026 | — | -1.6% | argenx: VYVGART momentum and a broader late-stage pipeline |
| MEDP Medpace Holdings, Inc. | FY2026 Q3 · Calendar Q4 2026 | +9.0% | -1.3% | Medpace: Record awards lift backlog as 2026 outlook improves |
| MOH Molina Healthcare, Inc. | FY2026 Q3 · Calendar Q4 2026 | +12.7% | +0.8% | Molina reaffirms 2026 outlook as Florida contract scales |
Latest beats and misses
Who reports nextBeat on EPS
- FCNCAFY2026 Q3 · October 23, 2026+19.9% EPS+8.2% move
- FCNCNFY2026 Q3 · October 23, 2026+19.9% EPS+0.2% move
- FCNCOFY2026 Q3 · October 23, 2026+19.9% EPS+1.0% move
- FCNCPFY2026 Q3 · October 23, 2026+19.9% EPS+1.0% move
- RDYFY2027 Q2 · October 23, 2026+24.0% EPS-0.2% move
- SLBFY2026 Q3 · October 23, 2026+3.7% EPS+7.1% move
Missed on EPS
- INFYFY2027 Q2 · October 23, 2026-4.8% EPS-6.6% move
- BBDFY2026 Q3 · October 22, 2026-7.7% EPS+3.0% move
- SNAFY2026 Q3 · October 22, 2026-5.9% EPS-3.4% move
- SPOTFY2026 Q3 · October 22, 2026-11.6% EPS+11.1% move
- VRSNFY2026 Q3 · October 22, 2026-2.0% EPS-0.9% move
- HBANMFY2026 Q3 · October 22, 2026-5.3% EPS+0.5% move
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Sources
- Earnings call transcript and parsed analysis · 2026-05-11T10:29:34.698584+00:00
- FN2 earnings calendar · 2025-01-29T00:04:08.037886+00:00
- Polygon adjusted daily market bars · 2026-10-25T02:30:41.932068+00:00
- Financial Modeling Prep analyst price-target consensus and quote snapshot · 2026-10-25T02:30:41.929320+00:00
Methodology
Reported and consensus figures come from FN2's earnings event records. Market reaction and volume are calculated from daily adjusted bars around the event; abnormal move subtracts the SPY move over the same window.
Analyst target low, average, and high values are derived at request time from each named analyst's latest persisted FMP target. The current-price marker comes from FN2's persisted market snapshot. They are sell-side estimates, not an FN2 valuation or recommendation.
Transcript intelligence is a structured synthesis of the current and prior earnings-call analyses. Missing values stay missing and are never estimated.
By FN2 Research · Updated · As of 2026-10-25. For educational purposes only; not investment advice.