ANTM Anthem Inc

By Dave Sebastian

Anthem Inc. reported lower first-quarter profit as expenses rose, though revenue increased.

The health insurer on Wednesday posted net income of $1.52 billion, or $5.94 a share, compared with $1.55 billion, or $5.91 a share, in the comparable quarter last year. Adjusted earnings were $6.48 a share.

Analysts polled by FactSet were looking for $6.30 a share, or $6.47 a share on an adjusted basis.

Medical-loss ratio, which represents the share of premiums the insurer pays out in claims, was 84.2% for the quarter, meeting analysts' expectations. Its ratio was 84.4% in the year-ago period. Analysts were expecting 84.2%. Investors watch the MLR as a gauge of health spending and insurers' operational profitability.

Revenue rose 20.1% to $29.62 billion, driven by pharmacy product revenue related to the launch of IngenioRx. Analysts were looking for $28.69 billion.

Expenses rose 21.2% to $27.53 billion.

The company's medical enrollment rose 3.2% to 42.1 million on March 31, partly driven by the addition of Medicaid members in Missouri and Nebraska, it said.

The company last month said it would waive copays, coinsurance and deductibles for in-network medical visits associated with Covid-19 testing. Anthem also said it would waive expenses for phone and video medical consultations for its members and relax early-refill limits on certain prescriptions to help patients stock up on necessary drugs.

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

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

April 29, 2020 06:36 ET (10:36 GMT)

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