UnitedHealth Group Inc (NYSE:UNH, ETR:UNH) reported second-quarter earnings that fell short of Wall Street expectations and reinstated a full-year forecast well below consensus.
The company posted adjusted earnings of $4.08 per share for the quarter ended June 30, significantly below analysts' estimates of $4.45, and marking a 14% decline from a year earlier. Earnings from operations also fell 34% to $5.2 billion, while net margin narrowed by 120 basis points to 3.1%.
Revenue rose 13% year-over-year to $111.62 billion, slightly ahead of expectations, driven by growth across both Optum and UnitedHealthcare.
UnitedHealth reinstated its full-year 2025 outlook following a cyberattack on its Change Healthcare unit earlier this year that had forced the company to withdraw guidance in April. The new forecast projects revenue between $445.5 billion and $448 billion, below the average analyst estimate of $449.1 billion.
The company expects adjusted earnings per share of at least $16, far short of the $20.90 analysts had been anticipating.
The disappointing report and outlook sent shares of the health insurer down 4.6% to just over $282 in premarket trading on Tuesday.
The medical care ratio—a closely watched measure of the percentage of premiums spent on patient care—rose to 89.4%, up 430 basis points from a year earlier. For the full year, the company expects the ratio to hold at approximately 89.25%, plus or minus 25 basis points.
“We’ve embarked on a rigorous path back to being a high-performing company fully serving the health needs of individuals and society broadly,” CEO Stephen Hemsley said in a statement. “We expect to return to earnings growth in 2026.”