CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) on Wednesday outpaced Wall Street’s expectations for first-quarter earnings and raised its guidance for the year, as it saw demand for prescriptions and more, while demand for Covid vaccines and testing declined.
The health-care company said it now expects adjusted earnings per share for 2022 to range from $8.20 to $8.40 compared with its previous forecast of between $8.10 to $8.30.
CVS reported net income of $2.31 billion, or $1.74 per share, higher than the $2.22 billion, or $1.68 per share, a year earlier.
Excluding items, CVS earned $2.22 per share, more than the $2.15 per share expected by analysts.
Revenue increased to $76.83 billion from $69.1 billion a year earlier. That topped/fell short of analysts’ expectations of $75.39 billion.
Customers have turned to CVS drugstores during pandemic, seeking COVID tests and vaccines. Now, the company is focused on other ways to draw foot traffic, drum up business and stem competition from online retailers. It has added more health-care services to its stores and encouraged members of its health insurance business, Aetna, to go to its drugstores for medical care.
In the first quarter, CVS saw declining demand for pandemic-related services. It administered more than six million COVID tests and more than eight million COVID vaccines in the three-month period. That compares to more than eight million COVID tests and more than 20 million COVID vaccines in the fourth quarter.
Instead of getting COVID tests at drug stores, more consumers are buying
CVS shares bounced higher $1.09, or 1.1%, to $97.09
