The sign of UnitedHealthcare is displayed on its office building in Minnetonka, Minnesota, US, on December 11, 2025.
Tim Evans | reuters
UnitedHealth Group on Tuesday reported first-quarter earnings that topped estimates and raised its 2026 profit outlook, as the company better manages higher medical costs and streamlines its operations.
The nation’s largest private insurer said it expects adjusted earnings of more than $18.25 per share in 2026, up from a previous outlook of $17.75 per share. UnitedHealth is maintaining its full-year revenue guidance of more than $439 billion, which the company said in January reflected “the right size across the entire enterprise.”
Here’s what the company reported for it first quarter That compared to what Wall Street was expecting, based on a survey of LSEG analysts:
- earnings per share: $7.23 adjusted vs. $6.57 expected
- Income: $111.72 billion vs. $109.57 billion expected
UnitedHealth is counting on a new leadership team to execute a turnaround plan. The strategy includes reducing subscriptions, selling the UK business of its Optum health care unit, investing heavily in artificial intelligence, streamlining access to care and increasing transparency to restore the company’s reputation as well as profitability after a series of setbacks over the past two years.
The company reported net income of $6.28 billion, or $6.90 per share, in the first quarter, compared with $6.29 billion, or $6.85 per share, in the same period a year earlier. Excluding items such as business divestitures, restructuring and an expected reduction in reserves for unprofitable contracts, UnitedHealth earned $7.23 per share.
Revenue rose to $111.72 billion from $109.58 billion in the year-ago quarter. The company’s insurers, UnitedHealthcare and Optum, both topped analysts’ sales estimates for the quarter, according to StreetAccount.
In particular, UnitedHealth has a better handle on high medical costs – an issue that has plagued the broader insurance industry for more than two years. Insurers, particularly those that run privately run Medicare plans, have been strained by the influx of people seeking care, have delayed access to high-cost specialty drugs like GLP-1 and the post-pandemic, among other factors.
UnitedHealth’s Medicare profit ratio – a measure of total medical expenses paid relative to premiums collected – came in at 83.9% for the first quarter. This is an improvement from the 84.8% reported in the year-ago period. A lower ratio generally indicates that the company collected more in premiums than it paid out in profits, resulting in higher profitability.
According to StreetAccount, analysts were expecting a ratio of 85.5% for the quarter.
In a release, UnitedHealth said the first-quarter ratio reflects strong management of Medicare costs and the release of funds previously earmarked for unprofitable Optum contracts. But the company said this improvement was partially balanced by “continued increased” medical costs.
“We are continuing to help simplify and modernize health care for the people and care providers we serve, bringing greater value, affordability, transparency and connectivity,” Stephen Hemsley, CEO of UnitedHealth, said in the release.
The results come just weeks after the Trump administration finalized a 2027 payment rate increase for Medicare Advantage plans that was far larger than initially proposed, boosting UnitedHealth and other health insurer shares.
