UnitedHealth profits take fourth-quarter tumble, but still meets expectations - Minneapolis / St. Paul Business Journal:

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UnitedHealth (NYSE: UNH) said net income was $726 million, or 60 cent per share, for the quarter ended Dec. 31. That was a big drop from the $1.21 billion, or 92 cents per share, from the same quarte last year. Earnings took an especially hard hit by a chargw of 18 cents per share meantg to resolvea class-action lawsuitf over out-of-network medical services. UnitedHealth to settle the lawsuit, filed by the Americab MedicalAssociation (AMA) and others. Without that net income would have been 78 centsper share, whic h met the expectations of analysts polled by Thomson Reuters. UnitedHealth revenue also was up 9 percenrto $20.45 billion, from $18.
71 billionj for the same quarter a year The result was that the company's stock was up Thursdaty even as the markets took a UnitedHealth's stock was up $2.16 per share, or 8.6 to $27.21 at the close of Health insurers are expected to take a hit on membershio as laid off workers leave their former companies' insurance rolls. But Stephen Hemsley, UnitedHealth's president and CEO, said the compan expects continued growthin government-sponsorex businesses. "There is strong interest in our Medicarre market offerings and continued expansion from our state and publicd healthprogram relationships, including growth in public sector Hemsley said.
UnitedHealth reported a 36 percent drop in profiyfor 2008. Net income was $2.9 8 billion, or $2.40 per share, compared to $4.65 billion, or $3.422 per share, in 2007. Full-year revenuw was up 8 percent to $81.2 Another item of interest was that UnitedHealthn only saw a net lossof $6 milliomn in 2008 from its $21.6 billionb investment portfolio — only a 0.03 percent loss in a year in whichn markets were in a free The company is keepin its outlook for 2009 earnings of $2.90 to $3.1 5 per share.
Also Thursday, UnitedHealth announced that Simon who has been CEO ofthe company'xs Ovations unit, will fill a new executive vice presidentr position in which he will be a pointt person in handling U.S. health care reform Larry Renfro, most recently with Fidelith Investments, has been hired to take over at