CVS profits rise in 4Q, 2012

CVS Caremark Corp. posted fourth-quarter profit of $1.13 billion, or 90 cents per diluted share, and full-year profit of $3.88 billion, or $3.03 per diluted share.  / BLOOMBERG FILE PHOTO/DAVID PAUL MORRIS
CVS Caremark Corp. posted fourth-quarter profit of $1.13 billion, or 90 cents per diluted share, and full-year profit of $3.88 billion, or $3.03 per diluted share. / BLOOMBERG FILE PHOTO/DAVID PAUL MORRIS

WOONSOCKET – CVS Caremark Corp., the largest provider of prescription drugs in the United States, posted fourth-quarter and full-year gains in profits, with its bottom line increasing 6.2 percent in the fourth quarter and 12.1 percent over the year.

For the three months ended Dec. 31, 2012, CVS reported net income of $1.13 billion, or 90 cents per diluted share, a 6.2 percent increase from the $1.06 billion, or 81 cents per diluted share, reported for the fourth quarter of 2011.

The company reported record revenue of $31.4 billion during the fourth quarter of 2012, a 10.9 percent increase from the $28.3 billion reported during the fourth quarter of 2011.

For the year, CVS saw its profits rise 12.1 percent from $3.46 billion, or $2.57 per diluted share, in 2011 to $3.88 billion, or $3.03 per diluted share, in 2012. The company also set a record for yearly revenue, posting $123.1 billion in net revenue, an increase of 15 percent over its 2011 total.

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Revenue for the company’s pharmacy services segment increased 17.4 percent to $18.6 billion during the fourth quarter. The company primarily attributed this to new 2012 client starts, drug cost inflation and the growth of the Medicare Part D program. For the year, total revenue in the pharmacy services segment grew 24.7 percent to $73.4 billion.

The company’s retail pharmacy segment posted a 5.1 percent gain to $16.3 billion during the fourth quarter of 2012. For the year, total revenue in the retail pharmacy segment grew 6.8 percent to $63.7 billion, compared with $59.6 billion during 2011.

In addition, CVS increased it dividend in 2012 to 65 cents per share from 50 cents per share in 2011.

“I’m very pleased with our fourth-quarter results. Both the PBM and retail segments turned in strong performances at the high end of our expectations,” CVS President and CEO Larry Merlo said in prepared remarks. “And we also realized below-the-line benefits in the quarter from a lower effective tax rate and fewer shares than we originally anticipated, resulting in EPS exceeding the high end of our guidance by approximately 3 cents per share.”

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