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Investment Q&A

Not investment advice or solicitation to buy/sell securities. Do your own due diligence and/or consult an advisor.

Q: Hello team,

In your answer to Peter, you listed the above companies for a healthcare watch list. Sorry to corner you by asking about your favorite and why?

CVS is cheap and has long-term promise, but I bet your choice will be between ANTM and HUM based on management. Will you endorse both for purchase in the near future? Why or why not?

Or will you prefer something completely outside this list?

Many thanks for your invaluable objectivity and guidance!
Read Answer Asked by Saeed on April 24, 2019
Q: I would like to start a watch list for US health care companies that have been hit this year but are good for the longer term.
Thank You, Peter
Read Answer Asked by Peter on April 22, 2019
Q: I have been looking at CVS in the last few days as a long term hold, the dividend is quite attractive. The share price has dropped to what looks like a 5 year low, the Forward PE is at 8.6. How would you evaluate the long term prospects of CVS? Could the large merger it has gone through make future dividend increases doubtful?
Read Answer Asked by Mike on March 01, 2019
Q: hello 5i:
given that US Health Care is not your specialty, and given that the 3 companies occupy different sectors in health care, could you give me your pick as to which of the three you like best using safety first, and growth second as criteria (I do realize that growth and safety create a conundrum of sorts).
thanks
Paul L
Read Answer Asked by Paul on November 05, 2018
Q: About a year about, I purchased CVS as a hedge against a downturn in the US health care. Since then CVS price dropped nearly 20 since then....first attributed to Amazon purchasing a grocer retailer, then recovered somewhat but then declined because of the news of three large parties, including Amazon planning to get into the health care sector to reduce costs to consumers. Seems CVS is out of favour...and could be so for sometime. Question - do I hold or do I let it go and focus on another US stock and what names would you suggest?
Read Answer Asked by Tom on February 01, 2018
Q: The future of Pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) remains unclear to me even after I worked my way through financials, analysts’ comments, analytics and commentaries in the more serious financial journals. CVS and ESRX appear to have been hit hard this year by the mere possibility being whispered ---- that Amazon might enter the pharmacy markets. Amazon might well do that just as they might start their own delivery service to compete with FedEx and UPS.

But surely even mighty Amazon cannot drink ALL the water in ALL the oceans.... or can they? The latter might well be confirmation bias in my reptilian brain.

I had largish positions in CVS and in ESRX. Whereas I had previously decided to ride things out, I have now trimmed at largish losses. I have reviewed past questions here on both CVS and ESRX, including my own past questions.
1. Do you care to update your answers in view of the seemingly unstoppable powerhouse that is Amazon?
2. What would you suggest a risk-tolerant (but not completely imprudent) investor do on each of CVS and ESRX?
3. Sell all and hide under the bed? Buy AMZN with the proceeds? Just PRAY?
4. I spent many hours ploughing through detailed reports on each of CVS and ESRX. Yet I am just as undecided after these reviews as I was before. Almost all analyses that I read say that both CVS and ESRX are under valued; that each is either a buy or a strong buy. I grant that the latter could have been confirmation bias in my reptilian brain.
5. What are YOUR insightful thoughts on the PBM business model in view of (a) possible Amazon threat (with reasons if you would please)
6. Since US Gov policy changes would make significant impact on all PBMs, although you might prefer not to incorporate the current instability in US politics into your own equations, I think in this case, please if you can make an exception and incorporate the political landscape into your comments, that would be very helpful.
7. I would be thankful for your substantive response on each of CVS and ESRX separately as their businesses have significant differences.


Read Answer Asked by Adam on October 23, 2017
Q: I currently hold CVS and am down 21%. In a response today to a question about WBA, you indicate that a switch from WBA to HD would be okay given the structural change being brought about by AMZN on the purchase of Whole Foods. While the person asking the question had a good gain on WBA, would your response be the same for my position in CVS?......thanks....Tom
Read Answer Asked by Tom on June 19, 2017
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