UnitedHealth Group has posted net earnings of $6.48bn for the first quarter of 2026 (Q1 2026), compared with $6.47bn in the same quarter a year earlier.
Diluted earnings per share attributable to common shareholders increased to $6.90 from $6.85.
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Quarterly revenue reached $111.7bn, versus $109.6bn in the corresponding period last year.
Within its insurance operations, UnitedHealthcare Employer & Individual recorded revenue of $20.1bn in the quarter, up from $19.8bn a year earlier.
UnitedHealthcare Medicare & Retirement generated $42.1bn in Q1 revenue, an increase of 1% from the prior year period, with trend-related repricing partly offset by a decline in the number of seniors served.
UnitedHealthcare Community & State reported revenue of $24.1bn, up 4% year-on-year, mainly due to Medicaid rate updates.
Operating earnings for the quarter stood at $9bn. The company said the result reflected better operations and ongoing investment.
UnitedHealth plans to buy back at least $2bn of its common stock by the end of Q2 2026.
Its medical care ratio was 83.9%, including a 20-basis point positive effect from the previously disclosed Optum Health loss contracts reserve.
UnitedHealthcare served 49.1 million consumers during the quarter. Operating margin widened by 40 basis points to 6.6%, from 6.2% in Q1 2025.
Total operating costs rose to $102.7bn.
During the quarter, UnitedHealth agreed to buy Alegeus Technologies, a healthcare technology platform, and completed the sale of its Optum UK business.
Reuters reported that over the past year the group has withdrawn from non-US operations and some health plans, reassigned leadership positions, and said it is investing $1.5bn in AI.
UnitedHealth Group appointed Stephen J. Hemsley as its CEO in May last year and Wayne DeVeydt as CFO in August.
For the full year, the company expects adjusted net earnings of more than $18.25 per share.
UnitedHealth said it is continuing measures launched in the second half of 2025 across community engagement, consumer and provider experiences, corporate governance, management, operations and technology. These steps included narrowing its focus to US healthcare by leaving non-US businesses and changing nearly half of its top 100 leadership roles.
Hemsley said: “We are continuing to help simplify and modernise healthcare for the people and care providers we serve, bringing greater value, affordability, transparency and connectivity.”
The company restricted employee salary increases to a range of 0–2% this year, with adjustments tied to performance, Bloomberg reported, citing sources.
The limited rises coincide with notifications of layoffs to an unspecified number of staff, according to the report.
