UnitedHealth Group (UNH) reported better-than-expected second-quarter earnings before Tuesday's market open. Revenue was about in line with analyst forecasts. The health insurer giant also raised full-year guidance. Shares rose a fraction.
X Estimates: Earnings per share should rise 21% to $2.38 a share, with revenue climbing 8% to $50.082 billion. That would represent the second quarter of decelerating earnings growth and the smallest revenue gain in 10 quarters.
Results: Earnings per share of $2.46 a share, up 25.5% vs. a year earlier. Revenue rose 8% to $50.053 billion. UnitedHealth's Optum services unit saw a 9.9% revenue rise.
Outlook: UnitedHealth now sees adjusted full-year profit $9.75-$9.90 a share. Analysts had expected $9.81 before Q2's results.
Stock: UnitedHealth rose 0.3% to 186.96 on the stock market today, hitting a new record high. The Dow Jones industrial average component has been consolidating since peaking at 188.66 on June 22, closing Monday at 186.35.
Why It Matters: UnitedHealth is the first of the major health insurers to report second-quarter earnings, with Aetna (AET), Anthem (ANTM), Cigna (CI), Humana (HUM) and others due in the coming weeks. (The U.S. government blocked proposed mergers of Anthem-Cigna and Aetna-Humana earlier this year on antitrust grounds.)
UnitedHealth has exited the ObamaCare exchanges, with most of the other big insurers also on their way out aside from Medicaid specialists such as Centene (CNC). But it's still a huge player in Medicare and Medicaid.
So Senate Republicans's late Monday decision to pull their health care bill could have a significant impact on UnitedHealth and other insurers.
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