Little Engines That Could? Analysts See Lots to Like in Insurtechs’ 1Q

May 17

Although first-quarter performance was decidedly mixed for the country’s largest publicly traded health insurers, three startup “insurtechs” — Oscar Health, Inc., Alignment Healthcare, Inc. and Clover Health Investments Corp. — largely impressed industry analysts with their financial results.

Oscar had a particularly outstanding showing, as the Affordable Care Act marketplace-focused insurer recorded its first quarterly profit since its founding in 2012 (the firm went public in 2021). Its adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) were $219 million, which was approximately $100 million ahead of the Wall Street consensus estimate. The firm reported diluted earnings per share of 62 cents, compared to an 18-cent loss in the first quarter of 2023.

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Health Plan Weekly

Leslie Small

Leslie has been working in journalism since 2009 and reporting on the health care industry since 2014. She has covered the many ups and downs of the Affordable Care Act exchanges, the failed health insurer mega-mergers, and hundreds of other storylines spanning subjects such as Medicaid managed care, Medicare Advantage, employer-sponsored insurance, and prescription drug coverage. As the managing editor of Health Plan Weekly and Radar on Drug Benefits, she writes and edits for both publications while overseeing a small team of reporters who also focus on the managed care sector. Before joining AIS Health, she was a senior editor for the e-newsletter Fierce Health Payer, and she started her career as a copy editor at multiple local newspapers. She graduated with a dual degree in journalism and political science from Penn State University.