UNH Acquires XL Health; Ups Outlook - Analyst Blog
February 13 2012 - 10:00AM
Zacks
UnitedHealthcare, a division of UnitedHealth
Group (UNH), announced the completion of the acquisition
of privately-held XLHealth Corp, a sponsor of Medicare Advantage
health plans for recipients with special needs. The deal was
announced in November 2011 and closed well ahead of schedule.
UnitedHealth managed to inch ahead in the face of stiff competition
from its peers, Aetna Inc. (AET)
and WellPoint Inc. (WLP).
XL served 113,000 Medicare Advantage (“MA”) members in Arkansas,
Georgia, Maryland, Missouri, South Carolina and Texas,
and has expanded to Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, New Mexico, New
York and Wisconsin.
XL Health has been a particularly attractive pursuit for
insurers owing to its expertise in serving Special Needs Plans
(“SNPs”), which includes members with chronic illnesses and
dual-eligibles (people who qualify for both Medicare and Medicaid).
The SNPs is the most profitable segment of the Medicare Advantage
program. Medicare Advantage is a privately run version of the
government's Medicare insurance program for the aged and the
disabled.
With an increase in the baby boomers population, health insurers
see expanding opportunities in this area over the next few years.
In fact, in the next 25 years, compounded annual growth rate of the
Medicare population is expected to increase to 2.7% from 1.5% at
present.
Managed care is expected to get a lot more attention as the
federal and state governments try to reduce $1.2 trillion from the
federal deficit over the next decade. Major cuts to the Medicare
program, whenever it happens, will necessitate a shift in some of
the costs to the seniors, making their Medicare Advantage plans
more attractive than traditional Medicare plans. Moreover,
many individuals would look forward to supplementing government
coverage with private insurance, boosting demand for Medicare
Advantage plans.
Dual eligibles have gained a lot of government’s attention of
late as they drive up government costs. As a group, dual eligibles
cost the state and federal governments a combined $300 billion
annually. They comprise 16% of Medicare's enrollees but account for
27% of its spending. According to the Centers for Medicare and
Medicaid Services, they make up 15% of Medicaid beneficiaries but
draw 39% of its spending.
It is imperative to enhance care options for dual eligibles as
the numbers are expected to shoot up with an ageing population and
increased life expectancy amongst Americans with disabilities. As
such dual eligibles have become an immediate target for spending
reductions and quality improvements in care.
America's Health Insurance Plans (“AHIP”), the insurers' trade
group, estimates that if all the duals were put into the best
managed-care plans, state and federal governments could save as
much as $125 billion during the next decade.
Presently, only about 12% to 15% of the duals are covered by
private health plans. Federal and state governments are looking to
place them into managed care to improve coverage and cut down on
wasteful spending and duplicate tests for a population that
generates a lot of medical claims.
The integration of XL Health with UnitedHealth is expected to be
a major boost to the company’s capabilities in the field. It will
enable the company to serve the needs of dual eligibles better and
meet the growing demands of this market segment.
The deal is expected to add approximately $2 billion to
UnitedHealth’s FY12 revenues and $0.05 to net earnings per share,
after integration expenses and investments. Including XLHealth,
UnitedHealth expects net earnings of $4.60 – $4.80 per share in
FY12. This is an upwards revision from the earnings per share
guidance range of $4.55 – $4.75 stated during the fourth quarter
earnings release.
The recent acquisition of HealthSpring Inc., a provider of MA
plans by CIGNA Corp. (CI), for $3.8 billion was
the biggest in this area. Other smaller acquisitions included the
purchase of CareMore Health Group by WellPoint
Inc. (WLP) in June last year and the Inspiris buyout by
UnitedHealth at the beginning of 2011. We expect an increased
thrust in the MA market over the next 18-24 months.
AETNA INC-NEW (AET): Free Stock Analysis Report
CIGNA CORP (CI): Free Stock Analysis Report
UNITEDHEALTH GP (UNH): Free Stock Analysis Report
WELLPOINT INC (WLP): Free Stock Analysis Report
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