UnitedHealth Group Inc raised its profit forecast for 2022 modestly on Thursday, saying demand for healthcare procedures postponed during the pandemic was approaching normal levels but had not increased as expected.
In early trading, shares of the largest U.S. health insurer rose as much as 3% to a record high of $553.29 before falling back to $542.86, up 1%.
While the company has seen earnings pressure from COVID-19 testing and treatment costs, some of that has been offset by people avoiding non-urgent care during the pandemic.
During the first quarter’s record Omicron-fueled surge in COVID-19, some US hospitals were once again forced to postpone elective surgeries. Cases have since declined sharply since the pandemic’s peak in January.
According to UnitedHealth, demand for certain procedures, such as cancer screenings, has increased. However, emergency department and pediatric visits, which add to the health insurer’s costs, were trending lower than usual, according to the report.
“What we haven’t seen is an expectation we had that incidence rates might rise due to missed treatments in the previous period,” Chief Financial Officer John Rex said on a conference call with analysts.
UnitedHealth increased both ends of its profit forecast for 2022 by 10 cents, now expecting adjusted earnings of $21.20 to $21.70 per share.
Revenue at its Optum unit increased nearly 19 percent in the first quarter, with much of the increase coming from its medical services, the company said, adding that it was focused on improving value-based care offerings, expanding digital care and at-home services, and improving value-based care offerings.
“The most notable trend was probably the continued strength of the OptumHealth business with the ongoing transition to value-based care,” said Morningstar analyst Julie Utterback.
UnitedHealth said its $5.4 billion acquisition of home and healthcare services provider LHC Group would boost its growth in the long run, but provided no further details.
The company earned $5.49 per share on an adjusted basis in the first quarter, beating Wall Street estimates by 11 cents.
Amruta Khandekar and Bhanvi Satija in Bengaluru contributed reporting, and Shounak Dasgupta and Bill Berkrot edited the piece.