BLOOMFIELD, Conn. – Evernorth Health Services (Evernorth), a subsidiary of The Cigna Group, has announced a $3.5 billion investment in Shields Health Solutions (Shields), a leading specialty pharmacy management company. Evernorth's investment coincides with Shields' establishment as a private standalone company upon its acquisition by Sycamore Partners, a leading private equity firm based in New York. This follows Sycamore's acquisition of Walgreens Boots Alliance, Shields' previous owner, which closed on August 28, 2025. Evernorth's investment in Shields is in the form of preferred stock and is not expected to have a material impact to The Cigna Group's previously issued 2025 adjusted EPS guidance of at least $29.60.
Thorvardur de Shong
"Demand for specialty medications continues to grow at an accelerated pace, and Evernorth is uniquely positioned to serve the rapidly expanding number of individuals living with complex and chronic conditions and the doctors who care for them," said David Cordani, chairman and CEO, The Cigna Group. "Investing in Shields aligns with our commitment to delivering exceptional care across health care settings – from home to physician's office or clinic, to hospital."
Shields helps hospitals and health systems develop and manage their own specialty pharmacies. Shields partners with more than 80 health systems comprised of more than 1,000 hospitals and clinics across nearly all 50 states.
Today, Evernorth supports patients living with specialty conditions and the providers who care for them through its direct-to-patient pharmacies, complex medication distributor, inventory management technology, home and ambulatory infusion services and more. Investing in Shields allows Evernorth to seek more opportunities to support patients and providers and enhance continuity of care across specialty health care settings. It also provides optionality for additional investment in Shields over time.
Michael Ham, Shields' CEO, said, "Our team at Shields has been proud to deliver exceptional clinical, financial and operational outcomes for our health system partners and their patients served through our differentiated care model. Both Sycamore's acquisition of Shields, and Evernorth's support for the transaction, demonstrate clear validation of our successful health system-focused specialty pharmacy strategy and patient-focused care model."
"We are pleased to have worked with Evernorth on this investment as Sycamore establishes Shields as a private standalone company," said Stefan Kaluzny, Managing Director of Sycamore. "The Shields team and Evernorth share an unwavering commitment to patient care and we are proud to support Shields on its next phase of growth."
