By Senad Karaahmetovic
CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) today confirmed it has reached an agreement to acquire Oak Street Health (NYSE:OSH) for $39 per share in cash, at an enterprise value of about $10.6 billion or an equity value of roughly $9.47B.
"Combining Oak Street Health's platform with CVS Health's unmatched reach will create the premier value-based primary care solution," said CVS Health President and CEO Karen Lynch. "Enhancing our value-based offerings is core to our strategy as we continue to redefine how people access and experience care that is more affordable, convenient, and connected."
The Wall Street Journal reported in recent days that the two companies are close to reaching an agreement. As a result, OSH stock soared about 30% from the start of the week before adding a further 5% in pre-open Wednesday.
"This agreement with CVS Health will accelerate our ability to deliver on our mission and continue improving health outcomes, lowering medical costs, and providing a better patient experience while offering significant value to our shareholders," said Oak Street Health CEO Mike Pykosz.
After the transaction closes, Oak Street Health will become part of CVS Health's recently formed Health Care Delivery organization.
Commenting on the WSJ report, Raymond James analysts said yesterday that the deal is about 5% dilutive at $39 a share.
“Suffice to say that CVS has acknowledged that it is behind its competitors, needs an asset it can scale and OSH is the best asset left… The key uncertainty is what changes CVS might make to OSH’s growth plans, and we note that WBA substantially raised Village MD’s co-located store openings,” they wrote.
CVS shares are up about 1.3% in premarket Wednesday on OSH news, as well as better-than-expected Q4 results.