CVS Health’s (NYSE:CVS) says its board has engaged advisors to conduct a strategic review of its business, according to people familiar with the matter, as the company contends with potential activist pressure and a severely depressed stock price.
The review has been ongoing for some time, said the people, but there is no certainty on what actions, if any, the company will take.
CVS management, including CEO Karen Lynch, met with major shareholder Glenview Capital Monday to discuss the company’s lagging prospects and Glenview’s plans to revive the stock.
But Lynch has to contend with an insurance business hammered by heightened medical costs.
In a statement, CVS spokesman David Whitrap told the media, “CVS Health’s management team and Board of Directors are continually exploring ways to create shareholder value. We remain focused on driving performance and delivering high quality healthcare products and services enabled by our unmatched scale and integrated model.”
The company has also grappled with leadership turnover. Lynch assumed direct leadership of CVS’s insurance unit earlier this year, displacing then-president Brian Kane.
Word came this morning that the company plans to lay off as many as 2,900 employees as the strategic review commences.
CVS shares backslid $1.57, or 2.5%, to $61.31 Tuesday.
