WalletHub: CVS pays among highest taxes in nation for S&P 100 firms

CVS HEALTH CORP. paid among the highest taxes in the nation in 2014, according to the latest survey by WalletHub. / COURTESY WALLETHUB
CVS HEALTH CORP. paid among the highest taxes in the nation in 2014, according to the latest survey by WalletHub. / COURTESY WALLETHUB

WOONSOCKET – CVS Health Corp. pays among the highest taxes in the nation, according to WalletHub, which released its S&P 100 tax rates report on Wednesday.
The health care-retail pharmacy company ranked ninth on the list of companies that paid the highest taxes in 2014, joining Anadarko Petroleum Corp., which placed first, Occidental Petroleum Corp., second; Devon Energy Corp., third; Citigroup Inc., fourth; and Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc., fifth.
UnitedHealth Group Inc., Exxon Mobil Corp., Facebook and ConocoPhillips rounded out the rest of the top 10.
WalletHub, which said tax reform has been a theme of this year’s presidential debates, said it analyzed annual reports for the S&P 100 – the “largest and most established companies on the stock market” – to determine the rates at which they pay taxes at state, federal and international levels, as well as how those tax burdens compare to those of American individuals.
The personal finance website said it also only included companies that were profitable.
CVS, for example, has an overall tax rate of 39.5 percent in 2014, while Anadarko Petroleum had an overall tax rate of 2999.4 percent, and Occidental, 109.3 percent. UnitedHealth Group’s rate was 41.8 percent.
As for companies that pay the lowest rates, Amgen Inc., with a production facility in West Greenwich, was second-lowest with a 7.6 percent rate, behind only Morgan Stanley with a negative 2.5 percent rate. Medtronic PLC, with offices in Mansfield, was 10th lowest with a 17.3 percent rate. Amgen also had the fifth-lowest international tax rate at 3.5 percent.
Other companies with local connections that made the list include Bank of America, 29.5 percent; Honeywell International Inc., 25.6 percent; and Verizon Communications, 21.7 percent.
WalletHub said S&P 100 companies pay approximately 24 percent lower rates on international taxes than U.S. taxes, and the average S&P 100 company pays an 11 percent higher tax rate than the top 3 percent of consumers.

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