...NEW YORK (S&P Global Ratings) Nov. 6, 2018--S&P Global Ratings said today that CVS Health Corp.'s good results for the third quarter of fiscal 2018 support our view that CVS will achieve its deleveraging targets following the anticipated acquisition of Aetna Inc. Reported results include same-store prescription volume growth of slightly over 9% and pharmacy services claims growth of about 6%. CVS also affirmed its commitment to improve leverage to about 3.5x within two years of the acquisition. Barring any unforeseen hiccups in the integration or remaining regulatory approvals, we believe the magnitude of CVS' cash flow generation (it expects $7 billion on a stand-alone basis for fiscal 2018) and its prepayable capital structure should allow the company to meet its financial goals. In our forecast, we expect adjusted leverage declining to the low-4x area within one year of transaction close and continuing. The company sees higher synergies from the Aetna acquisition, now forecast above...
