Minnetonka Minn.-based UnitedHealth Group recorded $2.3 billion in net earnings attributable to shareholders in the second quarter of this year, compared to $1.8 billion in the same period a year prior.
The health insurer's earnings spike partially reflects a 20.5 percent year-over-year growth in earnings from operations across all lines of its Optum healthcare service division in the second quarter of 2017. The payer cited a growth in care delivery in its OptumHealth health management segment and growth in revenue management and business process services in its OptumInsight advisory consulting segment as contributors to Optum's $1.5 billion earnings from operations in the second quarter.
UnitedHealth Group's insurance arm, UnitedHealthcare, generated $2.2 billion in earnings from operations in the second quarter of 2017, a 13.9 percent increase from the second quarter of 2016. The payer attributed the uptick to strong revenue growth and an improvement in operating margins. While UnitedHealthcare's employer and individual plan revenues fell $543 million year-over-year in the second quarter of this year due to its widespread ACA exchange exit, the loss was offset by gains in its Medicare and government businesses.
Overall, UnitedHealth Group saw revenue of $50.1 billion in the second quarter of 2017, up 7.7 percent year-over-year. Total operating costs also increased in the second quarter of this year, from $43.3 billion in the second quarter of 2016 to $46.3 billion in the same period this year.
UnitedHealth raised its outlook for adjusted net earnings to $9.75 to $9.90 per share this year, up from its previous projection of $9.65 to $9.85 per share in the first quarter of this year.