Shareholders will be ecstatic, with their stake up 22% over the past week following CVS Health Corporation's (NYSE:CVS) latest yearly results. Revenues were US$371b, approximately in line with whatthe analysts expected, although statutory earnings per share (EPS) crushed expectations, coming in at US$3.66, an impressive 20% ahead of estimates. The analysts typically update their forecasts at each earnings report, and we can judge from their estimates whether their view of the company has changed or if there are any new concerns to be aware of. With this in mind, we've gathered the latest statutory forecasts to see what the analysts are expecting for next year.

Check out our latest analysis for CVS Health

Taking into account the latest results, the consensus forecast from CVS Health's 24 analysts is for revenues of US$387.4b in 2025. This reflects a credible 4.5% improvement in revenue compared to the last 12 months. Per-share earnings are expected to jump 23% to US$4.49. Before this earnings report, the analysts had been forecasting revenues of US$386.4b and earnings per share (EPS) of US$4.74 in 2025. So it looks like there's been a small decline in overall sentiment after the recent results - there's been no major change to revenue estimates, but the analysts did make a small dip in their earnings per share forecasts.

Althoughthe analysts have revised their earnings forecasts for next year, they've also lifted the consensus price target 7.3% to US$70.38, suggesting the revised estimates are not indicative of a weaker long-term future for the business. 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. There are some variant perceptions on CVS Health, with the most bullish analyst valuing it at US$91.43 and the most bearish at US$48.01 per share. This is a fairly broad spread of estimates, suggesting that analysts are forecasting a wide range of possible outcomes for the business.

Of course, another way to look at these forecasts is to place them into context against the industry itself. 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 2025 expected to display 4.5% growth on an annualised basis. This is compared to a historical growth rate of 8.3% 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 7.2% 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 most important thing to take away is that the analysts downgraded their earnings per share estimates, showing that there has been a clear decline in sentiment following these results. Fortunately, the analysts also reconfirmed their revenue estimates, suggesting that it's tracking in line with expectations. Although our data does suggest that CVS Health's revenue is expected to perform worse than the wider industry. We note an upgrade to the price target, suggesting that the analysts believes the intrinsic value of the business is likely to improve over time.

With that in mind, we wouldn't be too quick to come to a conclusion on CVS Health. Long-term earnings power is much more important than next year's profits. At Simply Wall St, we have a full range of analyst estimates for CVS Health going out to 2027, and you can see them free on our platform here..

Before you take the next step you should know about the 2 warning signs for CVS Health (1 is concerning!) that we have uncovered.

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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.