CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) on Wednesday reported mixed third-quarter results as higher medical costs squeezed its bottom line. The earnings report is CEO David Joyner’s first at the helm of the troubled retail drugstore chain.
The company expects elevated medical costs to continue to pressure its performance this year, “and as a result we are not providing a formal outlook at this time,” a spokesperson told reporter. CVS will provide commentary on what it expects “directionally” during its earnings call, the spokesperson said.
“Establishing credibility and earning the trust of our investors is one of my top priorities as the new leader of CVS Health,” Joyner said in a statement. “To achieve that, any guidance we provide should be achievable, with clear opportunities for outperformance. This is a core principle for me.”
Wall Street’s confidence in CVS has soured this year after three straight quarters of full-year guidance cuts, prompting pressure from an activist investor to turn the business around.
Shares of the company are down nearly 27% for the year as higher medical costs in its health insurance unit, Aetna, eat into its profits, reflecting seniors who are returning to hospitals to undergo procedures they had delayed during the COVID-19 pandemic.
CVS shares sprouted wings and gained $5.66, or 10.2%, to $61.00.