(Bloomberg) — CVS Health Corp., the largest provider of prescription drugs in the United States, posted fourth-quarter earnings that beat analyst estimates as demand for medicine outweighed the drop in revenue from a decision to stop selling tobacco products.
Profit of $1.21 a share, excluding one-time items, was 1 cent more than the average of analysts' estimates compiled by Bloomberg. Sales rose 13 percent to $37.1 billion, the Woonsocket, Rhode Island-based company said in a statement Tuesday. Analysts had projected $36 billion on average.
Growth in prescription drug sales, driven by new health insurance available to millions of previously uninsured Americans through the Affordable Care Act, is helping the company weather the loss of tobacco revenue. CVS stopped selling cigarettes in September, making the fourth quarter the first full financial period without any tobacco-related revenue. CVS previously generated about $2 billion annually in tobacco sales.
Complete your profile to continue reading and get FREE access to BenefitsPRO, part of your ALM digital membership.
Your access to unlimited BenefitsPRO content isn’t changing.
Once you are an ALM digital member, you’ll receive:
- Critical BenefitsPRO information including cutting edge post-reform success strategies, access to educational webcasts and videos, resources from industry leaders, and informative Newsletters.
- Exclusive discounts on ALM, BenefitsPRO magazine and BenefitsPRO.com events
- Access to other award-winning ALM websites including ThinkAdvisor.com and Law.com
Already have an account? Sign In
© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
