Shares of drugstore CVS Health jumped Wednesday, a day after a federal judge decided to permit AT&T's bid for Time Warner in what many on Wall Street are considering a tacit go-ahead for other so-called vertical mergers.

The ruling may clear potential roadblocks ahead of the $69 billion tie-up between CVS and health insurer Aetna, a deal confirmed by the companies in late 2017. Shares of CVS and Aetna both jumped 3 percent on Wednesday.

Though the outcome in the six-week AT&T trial will undoubtedly encourage a wave of deal-making in the media and telecommunications industries, it will also likely facilitate future vertical mergers, whereby one company mergers with another in its supply chain.