People walk into a CVS Health Corp. store in Washington, D.C.
CVS Health Corp. is talking to investors about possibly selling as much as US$2.5 billion of bonds, according to people with knowledge of the matter.
The healthcare company asked Barclays Plc, Citigroup Inc., and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. to arrange investor calls on Monday, according to a person with knowledge of the matter. The new debt sale could come as soon as today, and is expected to be in the $2 billion to $2.5 billion range, said people asking not to be identified because the discussions are private. The securities will be hybrids—meaning they have characteristics of both debt and equity as far as ratings agencies are concerned.
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Proceeds from the bond sale will help CVS buy back debt. The company said separately on Monday that it’s looking to repurchase as much as $2 billion of bonds issued by CVS and its Aetna insurance unit in a tender offer. As much as $950 million of the notes that the Woonsocket, Rhode Island-based company is buying back are due in March 2025, while the other series of notes it’s offering to buy back are longer-term, the company said a statement. Barclays and Mizuho Financial Group Inc. are leading the tender offer.
CVS is trying to turn itself around after years of acquisitions have resulted in a surging debt load and stagnating earnings. Moody’s Ratings is looking at lowering the company’s grades by one notch in the coming months, a review that could bring CVS to just a step above high-yield status. S&P Global Ratings has signaled that a downgrade to the edge of high-grade is possible over about the next two years.
CVS’s offer to buy back debt shows management’s confidence in its liquidity position and ability to refinance debt, Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Jean-Yves Coupin wrote in a note. The company had about $80 billion of long-term debt, including leases, as of June 30. CVS purchased Aetna in a 2018 deal for about $70 billion.
Representatives for CVS and Citigroup declined to comment. Representatives for Barclays and Goldman didn’t immediately comment.
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