CI

The health insurer raised its forecast after a solid quarter, but investors focused on the one business so broken it’s forcing a strategic retreat. If you just glanced at the headline numbers from Elevance Health (ELV), a solid beat on revenue and a bigger one on earnings, you’d be forgiven for thinking it was a good day. Management even raised its full-year profit forecast. But the stock told a different story, plunging 8.5% by the closing bell. What gives? The market looked straight past the beat and saw a five-alarm crisis in one of the company’s biggest divisions: Medicaid. For a current owner, the quarter puts the company’s “diversified strength” narrative to the test. For a prospective buyer, it raises a critical question: Is the damage in one core segment too deep to ignore, no matter how well the rest of the company is doing? On paper, the results looked fine. Elevance reported adjusted earnings per share of $7.45, sailing past the $6.27 consensus estimate. The company felt confident enough to raise its 2026 adjusted diluted earnings per share guidance to “at least $27.” Other segments are pulling their weight, particularly Medicare Advantage, which is on a path to hit an operating margin of “at least 2% this year.” This is the picture management wants you to see: a well-oiled machine firing on most cylinders. But the market is fixated on the cylinder that has completely seized. The company’s full-year Medicaid operating margin outlook remains a stunningly negative “-1.75%.” More concerning than the loss itself is its stubbornness. Management noted that rate updates from states were actually coming in better than expected, which should have provided some relief. Yet, the forecast didn’t budge. As one analyst on the call essentially asked, “Why isn't there a lift if rates are coming in better?” The silence on that front was deafening, suggesting underlying cost pressures are either worse than acknowledged or simply not under control. When you can’t fix a problem, you get away from it. Elevance announced it “reached a mutual agreement with the District of Columbia to exit the D.C. Medicaid market.” More alarmingly, that’s not a one-off. Management stated they “expect to exit additional Medicaid markets over the next 12-18 months where we do not see a path to sustainable performance.” This action goes beyond trimming the edges, representing a strategic...

UnitedHealth Group crushed Q2 earnings forecasts amid lower-than-expected benefit costs, sending the Dow Jones stock surging past a buy point on Thursday morning. Rival managed-care providers including Humana, Centene and Elevance Health got a sizable lift from the initial warm reception for UnitedHealth's earnings report. Results: UnitedHealth posted Q2 earnings per share of $6.38, up 56% from a weak year-earlier result and 30% ahead of $4.91 forecasts.

Elevance Health raised its profit forecast and the stock promptly fell. Here’s the one number that explains why investors headed for the exits. On paper, Wednesday looked like a victory lap for Elevance Health (ELV). The company beat second-quarter earnings estimates and raised its full-year profit guidance. You’d normally expect a stock to rally on that kind of news. Instead, shares of ELV dropped 8.5% in a single session, badly lagging peers and the broader market. So what gives? Investors looked straight past the good news and fixated on a single, deeply troubled part of the business: Medicaid. What’s So Wrong With the Medicaid Business? While other segments performed well, management revealed a jarring forecast for its government program for lower-income Americans. The company is holding to its full-year Medicaid operating margin outlook of approximately -1.75%, meaning they expect to lose money on every dollar of revenue from a large part of their portfolio. Management called 2026 the “trough year for our Medicaid margin,” but the market wasn’t in a patient mood. How Bad Is It, Really? Bad enough that the company is starting to walk away. Elevance announced it had reached a “mutual agreement” to exit the D.C. Medicaid market. More pointedly, management stated they “expect to exit additional Medicaid markets over the next 12-18 months where we do not see a path to sustainable performance.” When a company starts shrinking a core business because it can’t find a way to make it profitable, investors get nervous. It signals the problems go beyond a temporary blip in costs to a more fundamental issue with state reimbursement rates and the viability of the business itself. But Didn’t Management Say Rates Were Improving? They did, and that’s the crux of the market’s skepticism. On the earnings call, analysts repeatedly tried to square the circle. One asked why, if state reimbursement rates are getting better, the company isn’t improving its negative margin outlook and is instead talking more about exiting states. The lack of a satisfying answer left a cloud over the entire report. The beat and raise in other areas, like Medicare Advantage, simply wasn't enough to offset the red flags waving over the Medicaid segment. Is this truly the bottom for Elevance’s Medicaid woes, or is shrinking the business the only path back to profitability? What Does The Options Mar...

With a market cap of $76.6 billion, The Cigna Group (CI) is a leading global health company dedicated to improving the health and well-being of individuals and communities through innovative healthcare solutions. Operating through Evernorth Health Services, Cigna Healthcare, and its subsidiaries, the company serves over 185 million customer relationships across more than 30 markets worldwide. The Bloomfield, Connecticut-based company is slated to announce its fiscal Q2 2026 results before the market opens on Thursday, Jul. 30. Ahead of the event, analysts expect CI to report an adjusted EPS of $7.58, up 5.3% from $7.20 in the year-ago quarter. It has surpassed Wall Street's bottom-line estimates in each of the past four quarterly reports. Jeff Bezos Says ‘We Don’t Have a Revenue Problem’ in America — Bottom Half Paying Just 3% of Taxes Means ‘We Can Find 3%’ SpaceX Has Massive Multiyear Put Options Volume As SPCX Falls Below IPO Price Intel Stock Is ‘Too Good to Ignore’ as HSBC Sets a New Street-High Price Target Stop Missing Market Moves: Get the FREE Barchart Brief – your midday dose of stock movers, trending sectors, and actionable trade ideas, delivered right to your inbox. Sign Up Now! For fiscal 2026, analysts predict the health insurer to report adjusted EPS of $30.39, a rise of 1.8% from $29.84 in fiscal 2025. Moreover, adjusted EPS is anticipated to grow 9.9% year-over-year to $33.41 in fiscal 2027. Shares of Cigna have declined 5.8% over the past 52 weeks, lagging behind both the S&P 500 Index's ($SPX) 20.2% gain and the State Street Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF's (XLV) 19.3% return over the same period. Cigna reported stronger-than-expected Q1 2026 results on Apr. 30, with adjusted EPS increasing 16% year-over-year to $7.79 and adjusted revenue reached $68.52 billion. The strong performance was driven by Evernorth Health Services, which generated $58.4 billion in revenue, and Cigna Healthcare reported $11.5 billion in revenue, a better-than-expected 79.8% medical care ratio, and an improved pre-tax margin of 13.2%. The company also raised its full-year adjusted income from operations guidance to at least $30.35 per share. However, the stock fell marginally on that day. Analysts' consensus rating on CI stock is bullish, with an overall "Strong Buy" rating. Among 23 analysts covering the stock, 16 recommend a "Strong Buy,” two have a "Moderate...

BLOOMFIELD, Conn., July 7, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Global health company The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) will release its second quarter 2026 financial results on Thursday, July 30, 2026, and will host a conference call the same day. Second quarter 2026 financial results will be released no later than 6:30 a.m. Eastern Time (ET). Management will review these results on a conference call beginning at 8:30 a.m. ET. The call-in numbers are as follows: Live Call (888) 566-1889 (Domestic) (773) 799-3989 (International) Passcode: 07302026 Replay (866) 405-7290 (Domestic) (203) 369-0603 (International) It is strongly suggested that participants dial in to the conference call by 8:15 a.m. ET on July 30, 2026. A replay of the call will be available from 12:30 p.m. ET on July 30, 2026 until 10:59 p.m. ET on August 13, 2026. Additionally, the conference call will be available on a live internet webcast at https://investors.thecignagroup.com/events-and-presentations/default.aspx in the Investor Relations section of The Cigna Group's website. Please note that this feature will be in listen-only mode. A copy of the company's news release and financial supplement will be available on The Cigna Group's website in the Investor Relations section at https://investors.thecignagroup.com/overview/default.aspx, no later than 6:30 a.m. ET on July 30, 2026. About The Cigna Group The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) is a global health company committed to creating a better future built on the vitality of every individual and every community. We relentlessly challenge ourselves to partner and innovate solutions for better health. The Cigna Group includes products and services marketed under Cigna Healthcare, Evernorth Health Services or its subsidiaries. The Cigna Group maintains sales capabilities in more than 30 markets and jurisdictions, and has over 185 million customer relationships around the world. Learn more at thecignagroup.com. Investor Relations ContactRalph Giacobbe1 (860) [email protected] Media ContactJustine Sessions1 (860) [email protected] View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/the-cigna-groups-second-quarter-2026-earnings-release-details-302818735.html

Before the stock surged, management laid out a turnaround plan for its Aetna unit that was so explicit, they practically put a price tag on it. It’s easy to look at a stock chart after a 57% run and feel like you missed the party. Between Jun 30, 2025 and Jul 1, 2026, shares of CVS Health (CVS) did just that, leaving investors to wonder what they overlooked. But this wasn’t a sudden bolt from the blue. The story of the turnaround was assembling itself, quarter by quarter, in the company’s own words. The evidence wasn’t buried in footnotes. It was the main event, a comeback narrative for its sprawling Aetna insurance business that management all but shouted from the rooftops. Let’s rewind to late 2024. The picture was not pretty. The company’s Health Care Benefits segment, the engine of the Aetna acquisition, was sputtering. Management warned that the division could swing to an operating loss in 2024. As of its fiscal Q1 2025 report, the company’s overall revenue growth had slowed, and its net margin of 1.4% was sagging. This was the moment of peak pessimism. But it was also the moment the new CEO earnings call, installed a new president and laid out a new playbook: prioritize profit, even if it meant shrinking. Here’s the tell. In that same call, with the business under siege, the finance chief did something unusual. He quantified the prize for fixing it. He told investors there were “$3, $4 more of embedded adjusted EPS if we can get our Aetna business back to its target margins" He wasn’t whispering. He was giving the market a roadmap. The plan involved making hard choices, like trimming membership in Medicare Advantage by 5% to 10% to shed unprofitable plans. A few months later, he repeated the math, noting that each point of margin recovery was worth another “$0.75 of adjusted EPS.” The market seemed skeptical. But just before the stock began its run, the company delivered the first concrete evidence that the plan was working ahead of schedule. For its fiscal Q1 2025, the Health Care Benefits segment’s operating income jumped by over $1.2 billion from the prior year quarter. The medical benefit ratio, a key measure of profitability, came in at 87.3%, a sharp improvement. The company promptly raised its full-year 2025 guidance. It also announced another tough but necessary decision: it would exit its money-losing individual ACA exchange plans, a move that...

Make better investment decisions with Simply Wall St's easy, visual tools that give you a competitive edge. Cigna Group stock has delivered a 34.3% gain over the past 5 years, yet the shares have fallen 8.0% over the last year and still screen as cheap on the latest valuation checks. That mix of solid long term returns, recent share price weakness, and a high value score sets up a clear question about whether the current price around US$287.77 fairly reflects the business today. Over 5 years, Cigna Group has returned 34.3%, which points to a business that has rewarded patient shareholders even though the past year has been more challenging. Recent developments at the Evernorth health services segment, including new AI powered pharmacy programs, can support expectations for cash generation. However, any disappointment in execution or returns from these initiatives may weigh on how much investors are willing to pay for the stock. Cigna Group is assessed as undervalued on 5 of 6 checks, meaning the broader valuation work leans cheap rather than suggesting the stock is fully priced or expensive, according to these checks. The issue now is whether that apparent undervaluation reflects a genuine opportunity in Cigna Group or simply matches the risks that investors see in the business mix and outlook. Find out why Cigna Group's -8.0% return over the last year is lagging behind its peers. The P/E multiple fits Cigna Group well because earnings remain a central yardstick for a mature healthcare and health services business. At a current P/E of about 12.1x, Cigna Group trades at less than half the Healthcare industry average of 25.9x and well below the peer average of 44.5x. This is the case even though the company now leans heavily on the Evernorth health services engine rather than just traditional insurance. The model based fair P/E for Cigna Group is 28.6x, which is more than double the current multiple and indicates a sizeable gap between the price and what would be expected given its profile. Despite recent attention on Evernorth’s Pharmacy Forward program and the broader health services shift, the market is still valuing Cigna Group on a considerably lower earnings multiple than sector benchmarks suggest. On the P/E measure, Cigna Group stock currently appears undervalued relative to both tailored and broad industry benchmarks. See what the numbers say about th...

Cigna trades at $298.08 and has moved in lockstep with the market. Its shares have returned 7.6% over the last six months while the S&P 500 has gained 8.4%. Is now a good time to buy CI? Find out in our full research report, it’s free. With roots dating back to 1792 and serving millions of customers across the globe, The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) provides healthcare services through its Evernorth Health Services and Cigna Healthcare segments, offering pharmacy benefits, specialty care, and medical plans. Examining a company’s long-term performance can provide clues about its quality. Any business can put up a good quarter or two, but many enduring ones grow for years. Thankfully, Cigna’s 11.3% annualized revenue growth over the last five years was decent. Its growth was slightly above the average healthcare company and shows its offerings resonate with customers. Larger companies benefit from economies of scale, where fixed costs like infrastructure, technology, and administration are spread over a higher volume of goods or services, reducing the cost per unit. Scale can also lead to bargaining power with suppliers, greater brand recognition, and more investment firepower. A virtuous cycle can ensue if a scaled company plays its cards right. With $277.7 billion in revenue over the past 12 months, Cigna is one of the most scaled enterprises in healthcare. This is particularly important because health insurance providers companies are volume-driven businesses due to their low margins. Revenue growth can be broken down into the number of customers and the average spend per customer. Both are important because an increasing customer base leads to more upselling opportunities while the revenue per customer shows how successful a company was in executing its upselling strategy. Cigna’s total customers came in at 16.62 million in the latest quarter, and over the last two years, their count averaged 9.8% year-on-year declines. This performance was underwhelming and shows the company lost deals and renewals. It also suggests there may be increasing competition or market saturation. Cigna has huge potential even though it has some open questions, but at $298.08 per share (or 9.5× forward P/E), is now the time to initiate a position? See for yourself in our comprehensive research report, it’s free. WHILE YOU’RE HERE: Top 9 Market-Beating Stocks. The best stocks don’t just...

Investors were underwhelmed by the solid earnings posted by The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) recently. Our analysis says that investors should be optimistic, as the strong profit is built on solid foundations. This technology could replace computers: discover the 20 stocks are working to make quantum computing a reality. For anyone who wants to understand Cigna Group's profit beyond the statutory numbers, it's important to note that during the last twelve months statutory profit was reduced by US$1.8b due to unusual items. It's never great to see unusual items costing the company profits, but on the upside, things might improve sooner rather than later. We looked at thousands of listed companies and found that unusual items are very often one-off in nature. And, after all, that's exactly what the accounting terminology implies. Assuming those unusual expenses don't come up again, we'd therefore expect Cigna Group to produce a higher profit next year, all else being equal. That might leave you wondering what analysts are forecasting in terms of future profitability. Luckily, you can click here to see an interactive graph depicting future profitability, based on their estimates. Because unusual items detracted from Cigna Group's earnings over the last year, you could argue that we can expect an improved result in the current quarter. Based on this observation, we consider it likely that Cigna Group's statutory profit actually understates its earnings potential! And the EPS is up 6.5% annually, over the last three years. At the end of the day, it's essential to consider more than just the factors above, if you want to understand the company properly. In light of this, if you'd like to do more analysis on the company, it's vital to be informed of the risks involved. Every company has risks, and we've spotted 1 warning sign for Cigna Group you should know about. Today we've zoomed in on a single data point to better understand the nature of Cigna Group's profit. But there are plenty of other ways to inform your opinion of a company. Some people consider a high return on equity to be a good sign of a quality business. While it might take a little research on your behalf, you may find this free collection of companies boasting high return on equity, or this list of stocks with significant insider holdings to be useful. Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the co...

CVS Health’s Aetna was the third-largest provider of Medicare Advantage plans in 2025, behind UnitedHealth Group and Humana.

Investors in The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) had a good week, as its shares rose 2.6% to close at US$283 following the release of its first-quarter results. Results overall were respectable, with statutory earnings of US$6.26 per share roughly in line with what the analysts had forecast. Revenues of US$68b came in 3.5% ahead of analyst predictions. The analysts typically update their forecasts at each earnings report, and we can judge from their estimates whether their view of the company has changed or if there are any new concerns to be aware of. We thought readers would find it interesting to see the analysts latest (statutory) post-earnings forecasts for next year. We've found 21 US stocks that are forecast to pay a dividend yield of over 6% next year. See the full list for free. Following last week's earnings report, Cigna Group's 17 analysts are forecasting 2026 revenues to be US$282.9b, approximately in line with the last 12 months. Per-share earnings are expected to rise 6.2% to US$25.34. Yet prior to the latest earnings, the analysts had been anticipated revenues of US$281.8b and earnings per share (EPS) of US$24.18 in 2026. So the consensus seems to have become somewhat more optimistic on Cigna Group's earnings potential following these results. Check out our latest analysis for Cigna Group The consensus price target was unchanged at US$339, implying that the improved earnings outlook is not expected to have a long term impact on value creation for shareholders. It could also be instructive to look at the range of analyst estimates, to evaluate how different the outlier opinions are from the mean. There are some variant perceptions on Cigna Group, with the most bullish analyst valuing it at US$378 and the most bearish at US$290 per share. The narrow spread of estimates could suggest that the business' future is relatively easy to value, or thatthe analysts have a strong view on its prospects. Taking a look at the bigger picture now, one of the ways we can understand these forecasts is to see how they compare to both past performance and industry growth estimates. It's pretty clear that there is an expectation that Cigna Group's revenue growth will slow down substantially, with revenues to the end of 2026 expected to display 2.4% growth on an annualised basis. This is compared to a historical growth rate of 12% over the past five years. Compare this again...

The Cigna Group CI reported first-quarter 2026 adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of $7.79, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 2.2%. The bottom line improved 15.6% year over year. Adjusted revenues grew 4.7% year over year to $68.5 billion. The top line beat the consensus mark by 2.7%. The quarterly results were aided by the strong Evernorth Health Services segment as a result of expanding membership base and higher specialty volumes. However, the upside was partly offset by rising pharmacy costs and a sharp revenue decline in Cigna Healthcare due to the Health Care Services Corporation (HCSC) transaction. The Cigna Group price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | The Cigna Group Quote Cigna’s medical customer base came in at 18.3 million as of March 31, 2026, which inched up 1.6% year over year and surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 18.1 million. The metric benefited on the back of well-performing Middle, Select and International markets. Total benefits and expenses of $66.1 billion increased 4% year over year in the quarter under review due to a rise in pharmacy and other service costs. The adjusted SG&A expense ratio improved 100 basis points (bps) year over year to 4.8%, resulting from a shift in business mix and better operational efficiency. Adjusted income from operations totaled $2.1 billion, which advanced 12% year over year, attributable to higher contributions from the Cigna Healthcare and Evernorth Health Services segments. Evernorth Health Services: The unit’s adjusted revenues rose 9% year over year to $58.4 billion in the first quarter as a result of drug mix in the Pharmacy Benefit Services business, and improved specialty volumes in the Specialty and Care Services business. The metric outpaced the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $56.6 billion. Adjusted operating income, on a pre-tax basis, came in at $1.47 billion, which inched up 2% year over year and marginally beat the consensus mark of $1.45 billion. The metric was aided by solid organic growth in specialty businesses. However, the pre-tax margin deteriorated 20 bps year over year to 2.5%. Cigna Healthcare: The segment recorded adjusted revenues of $11.5 billion, which dropped 21% year over year in the quarter under review. The metric suffered due to the HCSC transaction. Pre-tax adjusted operating income improved 18% year over year to $1.5 billion, higher than the Zacks Consensus Es...