CVS Health to close 900 of its drugstores over the next 3 years

CVS Health will close hundreds of drugstores over the next three years, as the retail giant adjusts to changing customer needs and converts to new store formats.

The company said Thursday that it will close about 300 stores a year for the next three years as it looks to reduce store count density in some locations.

The closures amount to nearly 10% of the roughly 10,000 retail locations CVS Health operates. The decision "seems odd" partly because some rivals are seeking to open brick-and-mortar locations at the moment, noted Neil Saunders, managing director of GlobalData, in a Thursday research note. But the closures come as CVS has failed to upgrade its locations, he added.