ANTM Anthem Inc

By Dave Sebastian

Anthem Inc. said its profit for the September quarter fell as expenses grew, and revenue rose due to higher premiums.

The health insurer Wednesday posted net income of $222 million, or 87 cents a share, compared with $1.18 billion, or $4.55 a share, in the year-ago period. Net negative adjustment items were $3.33 a share. Adjusted earnings were $4.20 a share.

Analysts polled by FactSet were expecting earnings of $3.85 a share, or $4.12 a share on an adjusted basis.

The medical-loss ratio, the share of premiums the insurer pays out in claims, was 86.8%. Analysts were expecting 87%. The ratio decreased from 87.2% in the year-ago period due to the deferral of health care amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

Revenue rose to 16.8% to $31.16 billion, driven by higher premium revenue due to growth in Medicaid and Medicare, pharmacy-product revenue related to the launch of IngenioRx and the return of the health insurance tax in 2020. Analysts were looking for $29.86 billion.

Expenses grew 22.2% to $30.77 billion.

The company had 42.6 million members as of Sept. 30, up 172,000 from June 30. Members in the company's government business grew 453,000 due to Medicaid and Medicare Advantage. The company's commercial and specialty business enrollment fell 281,000.

Write to Dave Sebastian at dave.sebastian@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

October 28, 2020 06:35 ET (10:35 GMT)

Copyright (c) 2020 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.