UnitedHealthcare Shares Plunge on Medicare Advantage Cuts and Rising Medical Costs
UnitedHealthcare (UNH) stock tumbled sharply, closing at $351.64 before plummeting further to $298.58 in pre-market trading. The selloff followed disappointing earnings that revealed mounting pressure from Medicare Advantage funding cuts and elevated medical care ratios.
The company's full-year adjusted medical care ratio worsened to 88.9%, up from 85.5% the prior year, with Q4 exceeding 91%. Rising care utilization and policy shifts squeezed margins across Core segments. Earnings from operations totaled $19.0 billion, but $2.8 billion in restructuring charges—including cyberattack costs and divestitures—dragged on results.
Market reaction was swift as investors weighed the dual headwinds of federal reimbursement reductions and persistent cost inflation in patient services. The earnings miss signals broader challenges for managed care providers navigating regulatory uncertainty and post-pandemic care demand.
