Commercial insurance
Employer-sponsored and individual health plans, either fully insured or administered for self-funded employers for a fee.
Health insurance stocks
Hospital and medical service plan companies, the managed-care insurers, collect premiums from employers, individuals and government programs such as Medicare Advantage and Medicaid, and pay members' medical costs. They make money when premiums exceed claims and administrative costs, and several also own pharmacy-benefit, care-delivery and data businesses.
How health insurance companies make money
Government programs
Medicare Advantage, Medicare Part D and Medicaid managed care, where payments are set by federal and state rules; Humana, Centene and Molina are heavily weighted here.
Health services
Pharmacy benefit management, clinics and data services, such as UnitedHealth's Optum and Cigna's Evernorth.
What drives health insurance stocks
- ◆Medical cost trends and utilization
- ◆Medicare Advantage payment rates and star ratings
- ◆Medicaid enrollment and state rate setting
- ◆Pricing discipline in commercial plans
- ◆Regulation of pharmacy benefit managers
Key risks
- ◆Medical costs rising faster than premiums
- ◆Government payment-rate cuts or audit changes
- ◆Star-rating declines that reduce bonus payments
- ◆Political and legal scrutiny of pharmacy benefit managers
KPIs to track
- Medical loss ratio (medical care ratio)
- Medical costs as a share of premiums; higher means lower underwriting margin.
- Membership by program
- Enrollment in commercial, Medicare and Medicaid plans.
- Days claims payable
- Reserve strength relative to claims being paid.
- Operating margin by segment
- Separates insurance from services businesses.
Fiscal calendars in this group
Managed-care companies report on a calendar year and reprice many plans annually, so the first quarter often looks different from the rest of the year as new benefit designs and enrollment take effect.
| Fiscal year end (SEC) | Companies |
|---|---|
| December 31 | CI, CNC, ELV, HUM, MOH, UNH |
Health insurance stocks: company profiles and annual filings
UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (UNH)
Company research page
UnitedHealth is the largest US health insurer and, through Optum, a major provider of pharmacy benefits, health services, and data analytics. Its combined insurance-and-services model gives it wide reach across the healthcare system.
- Fiscal year end in SEC snapshot
- December 31
- Annual report period end
- 2025-12-31
Centene Corporation (CNC)
Centene provides government-sponsored health insurance including Medicaid and marketplace plans.
- Fiscal year end in SEC snapshot
- December 31
- Annual report period end
- 2025-12-31
Elevance Health, Inc. (ELV)
Elevance Health provides health insurance plans, largely under the Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield brand.
- Fiscal year end in SEC snapshot
- December 31
- Annual report period end
- 2025-12-31
Humana Inc. (HUM)
Humana provides health insurance with a focus on Medicare Advantage plans for older Americans.
- Fiscal year end in SEC snapshot
- December 31
- Annual report period end
- 2025-12-31
Molina Healthcare, Inc. (MOH)
Molina Healthcare provides managed health insurance focused on Medicaid and Medicare members.
- Fiscal year end in SEC snapshot
- December 31
- Annual report period end
- 2025-12-31
The Cigna Group (CI)
Cigna provides health insurance and operates the Evernorth pharmacy-benefits and health-services business.
- Fiscal year end in SEC snapshot
- December 31
- Annual report period end
- 2025-12-31
Compare companies in this industry
CI vs UNH
Compare The Cigna Group and UnitedHealth Group Incorporated: business context, fiscal calendars and official filings.
CNC vs UNH
Compare Centene Corporation and UnitedHealth Group Incorporated: business context, fiscal calendars and official filings.
ELV vs UNH
Compare Elevance Health, Inc. and UnitedHealth Group Incorporated: business context, fiscal calendars and official filings.
HUM vs UNH
Compare Humana Inc. and UnitedHealth Group Incorporated: business context, fiscal calendars and official filings.
MOH vs UNH
Compare Molina Healthcare, Inc. and UnitedHealth Group Incorporated: business context, fiscal calendars and official filings.
CI vs CNC
Compare The Cigna Group and Centene Corporation: business context, fiscal calendars and official filings.
CI vs ELV
Compare The Cigna Group and Elevance Health, Inc.: business context, fiscal calendars and official filings.
CI vs HUM
Compare The Cigna Group and Humana Inc.: business context, fiscal calendars and official filings.
Sources and method
Industry codes and annual filing references come from the SEC submissions snapshot linked to each issuer in our company catalog (snapshot ; newer filings may exist). Only groups with at least three distinct issuers, business descriptions and annual filing links are included. Multiple share classes of one issuer count as one company. This is a coverage directory, not a complete industry census or a ranking of investments.
The industry explanation above is editorial and general; it is not drawn from any single company's filing. Company-specific figures are on each stock page with a link to the filing they come from.
SEC Standard Industrial Classification code list explains the classification system. Read our research methodology or browse all industry directories.
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