Verdict: Side-by-side breakdown using the Bull Rankings model. CI scored 71.9, CVS scored 52.2 — CI leads.
Compare another set
CI
The Cigna Group
Healthcare Plans · Quality-Growth
71.9
$282.43 · $74.6B
fundamentals as of
Score gap
19.7
CI leads
CVS
CVS Health Corporation
Healthcare Plans · Quality-Growth
52.2
$86.16 · $110.2B
fundamentals as of
At a glance · who leads each dimension, on the model's own rules
CheapestCI11.7x
Fastest growthCI+11.3%
Strongest balance sheetCI0.74
Highest qualityCI60 / 100
Largest discount to fair valueCVS-61%
Side by side · every name on one set of axes
Growth against the P/E multiple. Up and to the right is cheaper and faster — the quality-growth idea in one picture. Points beyond the axis are pinned to the edge and marked off-scale rather than allowed to compress everything else.
The model, pillar by pillar (0–100 each)
CI
stronger →← stronger
CVS
60
Qualityreturns · margins · balance sheet
45
72
Growthrevenue & earnings expansion
70
86
Valuevaluation vs sector peers
45
CI is stronger on 3 of 3 pillars.
Fundamentals, head-to-head
CI
CVS
$9.1bB+
FCF
$11.8bA-
+11.3%B
Rev
+7.8%B
0.74C+
D/E
0.96C
11.7xA
P/E
22.7xB+
0.77A-
PEG
0.21A
Winner per row is the stronger grade; where grades tie, the better figure breaks it. A true tie or a missing value shows no highlight.
Valuation · DCF cross-check
CI
CVS
53% below
Price vs fair valuelower is cheaper
61% below
~-10%/yr
Growth the price impliesyr-1 FCF growth, fading to 4% · lower = less priced in
~-15%/yr
+94%
1-yr DCF upside
+141%
+114%
5-yr DCF upside
+154%
+145%
10-yr DCF upside
+176%
The DCF is a cross-check on intrinsic value, separate from the quality-growth score above.
The companies
CIThe Cigna Group
Healthcare Plans · $282.43 · beta 0.30
Why now
Healthcare Plans · market cap $74.6b. 9% off the 52-week high of $311.34. Revenue growing +11%, comfortably above the S&P median. PEG 0.77 — paying under fair value for the growth rate. 24 sell-side analysts rate this a Buy with a mean 1-yr target of $342.29 (implying +21% upside).
Moat
ROE 17% is above 15% — the equity base is compounding at a rate the market struggles to discount accurately. FCF converts 142% of net income — earnings translate cleanly into cash. $74.6b market cap gives the company enough scale to absorb fixed costs that subscale competitors can't, without yet being so large that growth has to come from acquisition.
Risk
Net margin 2.3% is thin — operating leverage cuts both ways; input-cost inflation or pricing pressure hits the bottom line first.
CVSCVS Health Corporation
Healthcare Plans · $86.16 · beta 0.60
Why now
Healthcare Plans · market cap $110.2b. Down 22% from 52-week high of $110.68 — deep drawdown territory. PEG 0.21 — paying under fair value for the growth rate. 25 sell-side analysts rate this a Strong Buy with a mean 1-yr target of $115.76 (implying +34% upside).
Moat
Free cash flow runs well ahead of reported net income, mostly because of depreciation and amortization ($4.5b) — non-cash charges that hold down reported earnings while cash generation stays strong. $110.2b market cap gives the company enough scale to absorb fixed costs that subscale competitors can't, without yet being so large that growth has to come from acquisition.
Risk
Net margin 1.2% is thin — operating leverage cuts both ways; input-cost inflation or pricing pressure hits the bottom line first. ROE 6% is below the long-run sustainable threshold of ~10% — capital efficiency would need to improve for the equity base to compound at the market rate.
Verdict — model-derived comparison
Generating verdict… typically 5–10 seconds
Not investment advice. The Bull Rankings publishes a quantitative ranking model and accompanying analysis for general informational purposes only. Nothing on this page is a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any security; nothing is personalized to your circumstances, risk tolerance, or tax situation. Investing carries the risk of loss — invest at your own risk and consider consulting a licensed financial professional before acting on anything you read here. See terms and methodology for full disclosures.
Where CI and CVS diverge
On the headline score the gap is 19.7 points in favor of CI. The widest single difference is Value, where CI leads by 40.4 points.
ValueCI 85.5 · CVS 45.1CI +40.4
QualityCI 60.1 · CVS 44.9CI +15.2
GrowthCI 72.2 · CVS 70.3level
Pillars run 0–100. Value is judged against each company's own sector, so a Value score is a statement about a company relative to its own industry rather than to the other name here. A wide Value gap usually means the market already prices the difference in quality or growth — which is the trade-off this comparison comes down to.
Common questions
Is CI or CVS the better stock?
CI scores higher: CI 71.9, CVS 52.2 out of 100 on the Bull Rankings quality-growth score, which blends business quality, growth and valuation into one number. A higher score means a stronger business at a more reasonable price — it is not a price target or a recommendation.
Where do CI and CVS differ most?
The widest gap is value, where CI leads by 40 points on the 0–100 pillar scale. CI also leads quality, while growth is effectively level between them.
How are CI and CVS scored?
Each carries the same 0–100 quality-growth score used everywhere on the site, built from three pillars — quality (profitability and returns on capital), growth (revenue and earnings), and value (what you pay for them) — combined as a geometric mean, so a weak pillar cannot be papered over by a strong one.
How current is this comparison?
The whole universe is re-scored every trading day after the US market close, so the scores and fundamentals here reflect the latest published edition.