(Reuters) – Cigna Corp on Friday raised its forecasts for full-year profit and revenue and reiterated that it anticipates a negative earnings impact of about $1.25 per share this year from COVID-19.
Cigna’s rivals UnitedHealth and Anthem Inc last month raised their adjusted profit targets for the year, signaling confidence in their business despite continued uncertainty related to the pandemic.
For the first-quarter, Cigna reported a nearly 2% fall in profit, hurt partly by higher costs related to COVID-19 testing, treatment and vaccines.
The company’s medical care ratio, the amount spent on medical claims versus the income from premiums, worsened to 81.8% in the quarter from 78.3% a year earlier.
Five analysts polled by Refinitiv had pegged the medical care ratio at 82.8%.
The health insurer said shareholders’ net income fell to $1.16 billion in the first quarter ended March 31 from $1.18 billion a year earlier. Shareholders’ net income per share rose to $3.30 from $3.15.
The company said it repurchased 12.7 million shares, through the end of the first quarter.
Cigna said it expects adjusted income from operations of at least $20.20 per share for 2021, up from its previous forecast of $20 per share, and adjusted revenue of at least $166 billion, up from at least $165 billion forecast earlier.
(Reporting by Manojna Maddipatla in Bengaluru; Editing by Vinay Dwivedi)
