Nov 6 (Reuters) - Humana raised its full-year profit forecast on Friday as it expects medical costs to remain in check during the year.
"Humana is delivering positive results for our members, our patients and their health," CEO Jim Rechtin said. "We are also increasingly driving financial and operating performance toward being 'ahead' of our plan."
The company, one of the largest providers of Medicare Advantage plans for older adults and people with disabilities, is bucking an industry pullback by expanding enrollment in these plans amid a wider retreat by rivals.
Investors are counting on it to capitalize on this strategy after it emerged as the biggest beneficiary of the new 2027 Medicare Advantage star ratings, which will affect the government's bonus payments to insurers in 2028.
Humana reported a quarterly medical cost ratio, the percentage of premiums spent on medical care, of 93.7%. Analysts expected a ratio of 94.39%.The company sees annual adjusted profit of at least $9.50 per share, compared with at least $9 per share estimated previously. Analysts on average expected 2026 profit of $9.15 per share, according to data compiled by LSEG.
(Reporting by Christy Santhosh and Sneha S K in Bengaluru; Editing by Pooja Desai)