Insurer WellPoint's 1Q profit climbs nearly 6 pct

[April 27, 2011]  INDIANAPOLIS (AP) -- Health insurer WellPoint Inc. said Wednesday its first-quarter net income rose nearly 6 percent, as it trimmed expenses, saw enrollment grow and spent more than $700 million buying back shares.

The Indianapolis company also hiked its 2011 earnings guidance to $6.70 per share from $6.30 per share, a forecast analysts had labeled conservative. Analysts surveyed by FactSet expect, on average, earnings of $6.62 per share this year.

The largest publicly traded health insurer based on enrollment earned $926.6 million, or $2.44 per share, in the three months that ended March 31. That's up from $876.8 million, or $1.96 per share, a year earlier, when the insurer had 67 million more shares.

WellPoint repurchased more than 11 million shares in the first quarter.

Total revenue fell slightly to $14.89 billion. Adjusted earnings, which exclude $35 million in investment gains, were $2.35 per share.

The performance beat analyst expectations. Analysts polled by FactSet forecast a profit of $1.89 per share on $14.65 billion in revenue.

WellPoint says enrollment grew 1 percent to 34.2 million compared to last year's quarter mainly due to national accounts it administers for large employers.

Its selling, general and administrative expenses fell 4.5 percent to $2.08 billion, and the total spent on medical claims fell 1.4 percent to $11.23 billion.

The Indianapolis company operates Blue Cross Blue Shield plans in 14 states, including California, New York and Ohio.

[Associated Press]

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