Bulletin: CVS Health Corp.'s Fiscal 2015 Results Were Ahead Of Our Expectations; Ratings Unchanged

NEW YORK (Standard&Poor's) Feb. 9, 2016--Standard&Poor's Ratings Services today noted CVS Health Corp.'s fiscal 2015 results were modestly ahead of our previous forecast and we think the company could achieve leverage under 3x in advance of our initial expectations for year-end 2016. This year we think performance trends will remain favorable as good client wins (pharmaceutical benefit management) and retention rates, and benefits from the integration of acquired operations (including Omnicare) and its ExtraCare customer program could offset ongoing reimbursement rate pressures. We forecast EBITDA margins of about 9% in the next year. Our ratings on CVS, including the corporate credit rating, are unchanged. CVS will continue to generate robust cash flows, which supports our assessment

...NEW YORK (Standard & Poor's) Feb. 9, 2016--Standard & Poor's Ratings Services today noted CVS Health Corp.'s fiscal 2015 results were modestly ahead of our previous forecast and we think the company could achieve leverage under 3x in advance of our initial expectations for year-end 2016. This year we think performance trends will remain favorable as good client wins (pharmaceutical benefit management) and retention rates, and benefits from the integration of acquired operations (including Omnicare) and its ExtraCare customer program could offset ongoing reimbursement rate pressures. We forecast EBITDA margins of about 9% in the next year. Our ratings on CVS, including the corporate credit rating, are unchanged. CVS will continue to generate robust cash flows, which supports our assessment of its liquidity as "strong". We expect free operating cash flow of around $6 billion, the majority of which CVS will use for shareholder remunerations, including stock buybacks. As CVS' profit strengthens,...

Bulletin