Source: The Motley Fool.
CVS Caremark (CVS 1.49%) on Friday morning reported 2014 first-quarter earnings that missed profit estimates for the period. The pharmacy chain posted a quarterly adjusted profit of $1.02 per diluted share. While that was up 22% from the same period a year ago, it was $0.02 below analysts' average estimate for earnings per share of $1.04. CVS said net revenue increased 6% to $32.7 billion, which was in line with expectations.
Same-store sales increased 1.4% in the three-month period, with pharmacy same-store sales growing 3.8% but front-end sales down by the same percentage. CVS said pharmacy and front-end same-store sales were negatively affected by a weaker flu season in the first quarter and by the harsh winter weather. Despite this setback, CVS still expects full-year adjusted earnings in the range of $4.36 to $4.50 per share.
Shares of CVS were down 1.3% in pre-market trading, with the stock valued at $72 a share just before the opening bell.
