U.S. health care insurance provider Centene Corporation (NYSE:CNC) reported better-than-expected second-quarter earnings and a 2026 outlook.
The company reported second-quarter 2026 adjusted earnings of $2.51, beating the consensus of $1.08 per share.
Centene’s sales reached $53.579 billion, exceeding the consensus estimate of $47.617 billion.
Premium and service revenues increased 4% to $44.4 billion, primarily driven by premium yield and membership growth in the PDP business, rate increases in Marketplace and in the Medicaid business.
Medical Cost Improvements Lift Profitability
Health benefits ratio (HBR) of 89.6% for the second quarter of 2026 represents a decrease from 93.0%.
The consolidated HBR benefited from a lower Marketplace HBR resulting from improved pricing and risk transfer reflecting the acuity of the Marketplace membership. The HBR also decreased due to rate and revenue increases and continued tangible progress in managing medical costs in the Medicaid business.
Membership Declines As Medicaid Redeterminations Continue
Total membership across Centene’s portfolio declined to 25.885 million from 28.004 million a year ago.
"Our second quarter results and improved full-year outlook represent meaningful milestones on our path to restoring profitability and increasing shareholder value," said Sarah London, CEO of Centene.
The company in its earnings call said, "We ended the quarter with just over 12 million members (Medicaid), a slightly larger step down in membership than anticipated."
Centene Raises 2026 Earnings And Revenue Guidance
Centene expects 2026 adjusted earnings to be more than $4.80 per share compared to consensus of $3.52 and prior guidance of more than $3.40.
The company raised its 2026 sales guidance from $187.5 billion-$191.50 billion to $193.50 billion-$197.50 billion compared to the consensus of $191.02 billion.
"We are now expecting lower year-end membership than our previous outlook, with the increased enrollment and eligibility activity as we move through the back half of the year," London commented during the earnings conference call.
"Overall, we are pleased with the momentum building in our Medicare segment thus far in 2026 and look forward to leveraging that strength as we prepare for 2027," London said.
Last week, Molina Healthcare Inc. (NYSE:MOH) reported lower second-quarter premium revenue despite topping Wall Street estimates for earnings and revenue.
CNC Price Action: Centene shares were down 0.10% at $64.01 at the time of publication on Tuesday, according to Benzinga Pro data.
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