(Reuters) – Cigna Group second-quarter profit beat Wall Street estimates on Thursday, helped by lower-than-expected medical costs in its health insurance business.
The health insurer joins industry bellwether UnitedHealth Group and Humana, which in June had warned of a spurt in non-urgent surgeries pushing up costs, in reporting upbeat results.
While Cigna saw its medical cost ratio (MCR) — or spending on claims as a percentage of premiums — rise to 81.2% from 80.7% a year earlier, it was lower than market expectations of 81.95%, according to an average of four analysts polled by Refinitiv.
Premiums during the quarter rose 6% to $11.04 billion for Cigna, one of the oldest U.S. health insurers, beating analysts’ average estimate of $10.91 billion.
Excluding one-off items, the company reported adjusted profit from operations of $6.13 per share, compared with estimates of $6.02 per share.
Revenue from Evernorth Health, which includes Cigna’s pharmacy benefits management services, rose nearly 10% to $38.21 billion, helped by strength in its specialty pharmacy services.
Cigna provides drugs for cancer and rheumatoid arthritis through its specialty pharmacy unit.
The company maintained its annual profit forecast of at least $24.70 per share, and said it continues to expect medical care ratio between 81.5% and 82.3% for the year.
(Reporting by Bhanvi Satija in Bengaluru; Editing by Vinay Dwivedi)
