UnitedHealth Logs 4Q Profit Falls as More Care Returns
January 20 2021 - 5:55AM
Dow Jones News
By Matt Grossman
UnitedHealth Group Inc. Wednesday posted a drop in profit in the
latest quarter compared with a year ago as patients returned to
health-care providers and costs rose as the coronavirus pandemic
wore on.
The Minnetonka, Minn.-based health-care company recorded a
fourth-quarter profit of $2.21 billion, or $2.30 a share, compared
with a profit of $3.54 billion, or $3.68 a share, in the same
three-month period a year earlier.
On an adjusted basis, the company's profit was $2.52 a share.
Analysts surveyed by FactSet had forecast an adjusted profit of
$2.41 a share.
Revenue climbed to $65.47 billion, up from $60.9 billion in last
year's fourth quarter. Analysts were anticipating revenue of $64.96
billion.
Revenue from premiums ticked higher to $50.58 billion from
$47.63 billion a year earlier. Products revenue rose to $8.69
billion in the quarter, while services revenue increased to $5.75
billion.
UnitedHealth's medical-care ratio, the ratio of medical
expenditures to revenue from premiums, was 79.1% in the full year
after Covid-19 disrupted health-care earlier in the 12-month
period, contracting from 82.5% in 2019.
Revenue from Optum, UnitedHealth's health-services business,
grew to $35.9 billion in the fourth quarter from $29.8 billion in
the year-ago quarter.
UnitedHealth Wednesday also affirmed its full-year guidance for
2021, including net earnings of $16.90 to $17.40 a share and
adjusted net earnings of $17.75 to $18.25 a share.
Write to Matt Grossman at matt.grossman@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
January 20, 2021 06:40 ET (11:40 GMT)
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