CVS Health Corporation (NYSE:CVS) defied analyst predictions to release its quarterly results, which were ahead of market expectations. It was overall a positive result, with revenues beating expectations by 5.7% to hit US$100b. CVS Health reported statutory earnings per share (EPS) US$2.30, which was a notable 19% above what the analysts had forecast. This is an important time for investors, as they can track a company's performance in its report, look at what experts are forecasting for next year, and see if there has been any change to expectations for the business. Readers will be glad to know we've aggregated the latest statutory forecasts to see whether the analysts have changed their mind on CVS Health after the latest results.

Taking into account the latest results, CVS Health's 22 analysts currently expect revenues in 2026 to be US$408.3b, approximately in line with the last 12 months. Per-share earnings are expected to bounce 166% to US$6.11. Yet prior to the latest earnings, the analysts had been anticipated revenues of US$405.2b and earnings per share (EPS) of US$5.93 in 2026. So the consensus seems to have become somewhat more optimistic on CVS Health's earnings potential following these results.

There's been no major changes to the consensus price target of US$99.77, suggesting that the improved earnings per share outlook is not enough to have a long-term positive impact on the stock's valuation. Fixating on a single price target can be unwise though, since the consensus target is effectively the average of analyst price targets. As a result, some investors like to look at the range of estimates to see if there are any diverging opinions on the company's valuation. The most optimistic CVS Health analyst has a price target of US$140 per share, while the most pessimistic values it at US$79.00. This is a fairly broad spread of estimates, suggesting that analysts are forecasting a wide range of possible outcomes for the business.

Looking at the bigger picture now, one of the ways we can make sense of these forecasts is to see how they measure up against both past performance and industry growth estimates. It's pretty clear that there is an expectation that CVS Health's revenue growth will slow down substantially, with revenues to the end of 2026 expected to display 0.9% growth on an annualised basis. This is compared to a historical growth rate of 7.9% over the past five years. Compare this against other companies (with analyst forecasts) in the industry, which are in aggregate expected to see revenue growth of 4.8% annually. So it's pretty clear that, while revenue growth is expected to slow down, the wider industry is also expected to grow faster than CVS Health.

The Bottom Line

The biggest takeaway for us is the consensus earnings per share upgrade, which suggests a clear improvement in sentiment around CVS Health's earnings potential next year. On the plus side, there were no major changes to revenue estimates; although forecasts imply they will perform worse than the wider industry. The consensus price target held steady at US$99.77, with the latest estimates not enough to have an impact on their price targets.

Following on from that line of thought, we think that the long-term prospects of the business are much more relevant than next year's earnings. At Simply Wall St, we have a full range of analyst estimates for CVS Health going out to 2028, and you can see them free on our platform here..

This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.