Evernorth Health Services, a subsidiary of The Cigna Group (NYSE: CI), today announced a $3.5 billion investment in Shields Health Solutions, 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.
“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 M. Cordani, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, 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’ Chief Executive Officer, 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.”
Greenhill, an affiliate of Mizuho, is acting as the sole financial advisor to Evernorth during this transaction. Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz is serving as corporate legal counsel and Holland & Knight LLP is serving as regulatory counsel.
About Evernorth Health Services
Evernorth Health Services creates pharmacy, care, and benefits solutions to improve health and increase vitality. We relentlessly innovate to make the prediction, prevention, and treatment of illness and disease more accessible to millions of people. Evernorth capabilities are powered by our businesses, including Express Scripts, Express Scripts® Pharmacy, Accredo, eviCore, and MDLIVE, along with holistic Evernorth platforms and solutions that move people and organizations forward. All Evernorth solutions are serviced and provided by or through operating affiliates of Evernorth Health, a wholly owned subsidiary of The Cigna Group (NYSE: CI), or third-party partners. Learn more at evernorth.com.
About Shields Health Solutions
Shields Health Solutions (Shields) is the premier specialty pharmacy accelerator in the country. The Shields Performance Platform, an integrated set of solutions, services and technology, is intentionally designed to elevate payer and drug access for specialty pharmacies, elevate health outcomes for complex patients, and elevate growth throughout the entire health system. As the foremost experts in the health system specialty pharmacy industry, Shields has a proven track record of success including access to over 80 percent of all limited distribution drugs (LDDs) and most (health insurance) payers in the nation; and a clinical model proven to lower total cost of care by 13%. In partnership with nearly 80 health systems across the country through national-scale collaboration, Shields has a vested interest in delivering measurable clinical and financial results for health systems. For more, follow us on social media, @ShieldsRX, LinkedIn, Facebook, and YouTube. Shields Health Solutions employs more than 2,000 people across the country.
About Sycamore Partners
Sycamore Partners is a private equity firm based in New York. The firm specializes in consumer, distribution and retail-related investments and partners with management teams to improve the operating profitability and strategic value of their business. With approximately $11 billion in aggregate committed capital raised since its inception in 2011, Sycamore Partners’ investors include leading endowments, financial institutions, family offices, pension plans and sovereign wealth funds. For more information on Sycamore Partners, visit www.sycamorepartners.com.
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