Hartford health insurer Aetna said Wednesday that its fourth-quarter net income jumped 73 percent, as lower health care utilization and expenses helped pad the company’s bottom line, The Associated Press report.
Aetna said its earnings for the quarter ending Dec. 31 totaled $372.6 million, or $1.02 per share, compared to $215.6 million, or 53 cents per share, in the year ago period. Revenue grew slightly to $8.57 billion.
The managed care company’s earnings and revenue topped Wall Street expectations due in part to slower-than-expected growth in health care use.
Health care costs, or the amount Aetna paid in medical claims, fell 2 percent in the quarter to $5.59 billion, while operating expenses fell 3 percent to $1.83 billion.
Aetna reaffirmed its forecast for 2012 adjusted earnings of $5 per share. Analysts expect $5.08 per share.
