CVS Resorts to Pizza Parties to Push Vaccines

CVS Health (CVS) really wants customers to stop by to get their vaccines. The pharmaceutical company is now reportedly offering bonuses to workers in hopes of pushing them to increase vaccinations. Pizza parties, donuts, tacos, and ice cream—perfectly healthy dietary options for a health-focused company to offer its staff—await CVS employees who surpass the company’s vaccine goals, according to Bloomberg.

While CVS workers are stuck with the most stock standard bonuses in this vaccination push, pharmacy managers will be treated a little better. Some are being offered one-day trips to the beach if they can light a fire under their staff and hit vaccine milestones.

What’s Behind the CVS Vaccine Parties?

CVS wants to bolster vaccinations as it’s an easy source of revenue for the pharmacy and healthcare company. However, that might become harder to do under President Donald Trump’s administration. That’s due to the addition of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as the United States Secretary of Health and Human Services.

RFK’s battle against vaccines and calls for more clinical data before approval have resonated with Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Martin Makary. As a result, the FDA plans to change its approval requirements for future COVID-19 booster shots. This would limit booster shots to patients 65 years or older, or those with underlying conditions that increase their risk of a severe COVID-19 infection. That change could eat into CVS’s vaccine revenue as the COVID-19 shots are approved for fewer people.

CVS investors weren’t pleased by that news, sending the stock 1.79% lower on Wednesday. Even so, the shares are still up 42.79% year-to-date.

Is CVS Stock a Buy, Sell, or Hold?

Turning to Wall Street, the analysts’ consensus rating for CVS is Strong Buy, based on 15 Buy and two Hold ratings over the last three months. With that comes an average CVS stock price target of $80.13, representing a potential 28% upside for the shares.

See more CVS stock analyst ratings