Investing.com -- CVS Health Corporation (NYSE: CVS) reported first-quarter results that exceeded Wall Street expectations, with the company also raising its full-year outlook, sending shares up 4.1% premarket.

The health care giant posted adjusted earnings per share of $2.57, beating the analyst consensus of $2.21 by $0.36. Revenue climbed 6.2% YoY to $100.4 billion, surpassing the $95.02 billion estimate. The strong performance was driven by improved execution in the Health Care Benefits segment, which saw adjusted operating income surge 52.6% to $3.0 billion as the company continued its margin recovery plan.

CVS raised its full-year 2026 adjusted EPS guidance to a range of $7.30 to $7.50, up from the previous range of $7.00 to $7.20. The midpoint of $7.40 exceeds the analyst consensus of $7.16. The company also increased its cash flow from operations guidance to at least $9.5 billion from at least $9.0 billion. The stock gained 4.1% following the announcement.

"Our positive performance is driven by strong execution across our enterprise," said David Joyner, CVS Health Chairman and CEO. "We will continue to build momentum through delivering on our strategy and a steadfast focus on our purpose - to simplify health care one person, one family and one community at a time."

The Health Care Benefits segment showed significant improvement, with the medical benefit ratio declining to 84.6% from 87.3% in the prior year, reflecting better underlying performance in the Government business.

However, the Health Services segment saw adjusted operating income decline 7.1% to $1.5 billion due to continued pharmacy client price improvements, while the Pharmacy & Consumer Wellness segment's adjusted operating income fell 8.8% to $1.2 billion, pressured by pharmacy reimbursement challenges.