Us stocks have been in turmoil this year amid a cycle of interest rate hikes in the midst of inflation and recession. The S & P 500 index hovered in the bear market range, falling more than 15% during the year, but one sector rose against the market, and there are more than 100 billion market capitalization giants hitting new highs, that is, mainly health insurance companies.$Healthcare Plans (BK2246.US)$Plate.
The demand of medical and health insurance is inelastic, the defense value is prominent in the current environment, and the capital is more favored. The strong performance boosted by COVID-19 's epidemic and the recent pick-up in mergers and acquisitions have made the industry stand out in the US stock market this year. Among them$UnitedHealth (UNH.US)$、$Humana (HUM.US)$、$Centene (CNC.US)$It hit new highs in several trading days this year, while Cigna Corp recorded an annual increase of more than 26%, outperforming a group of companies with the same market capitalization.
The United States is the only developed country in the world that does not have a universal health insurance system, which is heavily dependent on commercial insurance. At the same time, the cost of health care in the United States is so high that for ordinary local residents, without health insurance, the cost of a serious illness or serious trauma is enough to bankrupt them.According to statistics,More than 80% of Americans buy a variety of private health insurance products, which is a huge market.
Relying on the support of the institutional system and the innovation of business models, the development of health insurance in the United States has been in the forefront.At present, the medical insurance provided by most insurance companies in the United States belongs to controlled medical insurance, which is a medical insurance model that integrates the provision and management of medical services. the key is that insurance companies directly participate in the management of medical service system.Compared with the traditional reimbursement medical insurance, this kind of insurance determines the scope and level of payment in advance and in advance. At the same time, insurance companies and medical service providers become a community of interests, which can effectively control risks and reduce insurance costs.
With the mature and leading business model, many excellent companies with both large-scale and high growth have been born in the health insurance industry.In terms of market capitalization, the top five companies in the US health insurance industry are UnitedHealth Group Inc Group (UnitedHealth), Aetna (which has been acquired by CVS and ranked second in market capitalization), Anson Insurance (Anthem Inc, now renamed Elevance Health), Cigna Corp Insurance (Cigna) and Humana. The following is an introduction to the top five companies:
UnitedHealth Group Inc Group (UnitedHealth Group) is a diversified health and welfare company, founded in 1974 and headquartered in Minnesota, USA. It provides health services across the United States through two different platforms: Optum, which provides health services that provide information and technical support, and UnitedHealthcare, which provides medical insurance and welfare services. The company ranks 11th on the 2022 Fortune 500 list.According to market share and market capitalization, UnitedHealth Group Inc Group is the number one company in the industry.
Share Chart of the Top Ten American Health Insurance companies in 2021, Source: Value Penguin
The company reported second-quarter results on July 15 this year, with revenue up 12.6% year-on-year to $80.33 billion, and earnings much higher than expected, rising to $5.07 billion ($5.34 per share) from $4.27 billion ($4.46 per share) in the same period last year. the reason is that its business "balanced" growth and raised its full-year profit target. The company's brilliant results boosted the company's performance by 5%.
In addition, the company also actively participates in mergers and acquisitions to expand the medical business territory.As early as the end of March this year, UnitedHealth Group Inc bought LHC Group, a listed health care company, for $5.4 billion ($170per share). Recently, UnitedHealth Group Inc is competing with Amazon.Com Inc and Savis Health, which is also a leader in the health insurance industry, to buy Signify Health, a health care provider, according to people familiar with the matter. UnitedHealth Group Inc submitted the highest offer of more than $30 a share, followed by Amazon.Com Inc's offer. The source pointed out that the final bid is expected on September 6, but if either party is ahead of the sales process, the deal may be reached ahead of time.
As the "number one brother" in the market capitalization of the medical insurance sectorUnitedHealth Group Inc has maintained a long bull trend in the past few years, and he is a well-deserved ten-fold stock in ten years.
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CVS Health Corporation is an American healthcare company founded in 1963 and headquartered in Winsoquet, Georgia, USA. It owns many brands such as retail chain drugstore CVS Pharmacy, pharmacy welfare management business CVS Caremark and health insurance provider Antai Insurance. The company used to be the largest pharmaceutical retail chain in the United States, and then acquired Aetna Insurance, which ranks third in membership, for $69 billion in 2017, realizing a strong combination of pharmacy and health insurance. Sylvis Health ranks 10th on the 2022 Fortune 500 list.
Sylvis Health reported second-quarter results on Aug. 3, with revenue of $80.6 billion, up 11% from a year earlier, higher than analysts' expectations of $76.4 billion, and net income and earnings per share also beat analysts' expectations. The day after the results, the company's shares rose more than 6 per cent.
Like UnitedHealth Group Inc, Savis Health also participated in the Signify Health bid. In addition,According to the 13F report, Savis Health ranked first among the buyers of Qiaoshui in the second quarter, with a sharp increase in its holdings of 160% to 3.15 million shares, valued at $291.5 million.
Elevance Health formerly known as Anthem Inc InsuranceIt is the second largest medical insurance provider in total membership.It has more than 45 million members and is part of the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association. The company's commercial and commercial healthcare divisions provide web-based medical services for businesses, individuals, and the Medicaid and Medicare markets. On June 28th, 2022, Anthem Inc announced that the company name would be changed to Elevance Health, Inc., and its stock symbol would be changed from "ANTM" to "ELV". The company ranks 50th on the 2022 Fortune 500 list.
Elevance Health reported second-quarter revenue of $38.63 billion, up about 16% year-on-year and exceeding market expectations of $38.05 billion, driven by an increase in premium income, while adjusted earnings per share climbed about 14% to $8.04, exceeding market expectations of $7.74. However, the results were not bullish by the market, and the company's performance fell nearly 8%.Michael Newshel, an analyst at Evercore ISI, believes that Elevance Health's report card is slightly inferior to the "gold-absorbing" performance of its competitor UnitedHealth Group Inc.
Cigna Corp Group is formed by the merger of two American insurance companies with a long history and strong strength: North American Insurance Company and Kangzhong Life Insurance Company, which were established in 1792 and 1865 respectively, and the two companies merged in 1982. Headquartered in Bloomfield, Connecticut.Cigna Corp is the fourth largest publicly listed health insurer in the United States in terms of membership.In addition to corporate health insurance and managing these plans, Cigna Corp also provides dental, behavioral health, vision, supplementary health and medical insurance / Medicaid benefits. Cigna Corp currently offers personal health insurance in 13 states and Medicare Advantage programs in 16 states and Washington, D.C. Cigna Corp ranks 30th on the 2022 Fortune 500 list.
Cigna Corp reported second-quarter results ahead of US stocks on Aug. 4, with quarterly net profit of $1.559 billion, up 6 per cent year-on-year, and adjusted earnings per share rose 18.7 per cent year-on-year to $6.22, beating market expectations of $5.48. while total revenue rose 5.45 per cent to $45.48 billion. At the same time, the company raised its full-year performance outlook.
The stock is the biggest middle-aged gainer in the health care sector and is unanimously favored by analysts.According to MarketBeat, more than 80 per cent of the 26 analysts currently tracking the company have rated Cigna Corp above medium, with an average 12-month target price of $305.58, which is still rising. Among them, UBS raised its latest target price to $330 from $310, which still has nearly 15% room to rise from the closing price on Aug. 29.
Founded in 1961 and headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky, Hamena grew from an initial nursing home to the largest chain of nursing institutions in the country, and then moved across the border to the hospital business.，It is currently the fifth largest health insurance company in terms of membership. At present, Harmona's products are mainly Medicare and Medicaid, covering individual and group plans, but mainly individual plans. Among themGroup Medicare is a feature provided by Humana to assist employers or trade unions to provide insurance plans for retirees.The company ranked 132nd in the 2022 Fortune 500 list.
On July 27th Hamena reported second-quarter revenue of about $23.72 billion, up about 15% from a year earlier and exceeding expectations of $23.46 billion, while net profit was $697 million, up about 18% from a year earlier. In addition, the company raised its full-year earnings per share guidance to $24.75, compared with market expectations of $24.66.
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