WellPoint Adjusted Earnings Climb 12%, Beat Forecasts

WellPoint Inc. said on Wednesday that third-quarter profit dropped 3.9% to $630.9 million, from $656.2 million in the same period last year. Earnings per share, however, climbed 2.8% to $2.22 from $2.16, as the number of outstanding shares declined. On an adjusted basis, the health-care company earned $2.36 per share, up 12.4% from the $2.10 posted in the same quarter last year. Total revenue rose to $18.56 billion from $17.86 billion. Analysts surveyed by FactSet expected adjusted earnings of $2.26 a share on revenue of $18.74 billion. For the full year, WellPoint said it expects adjusted earnings in the range of $8.75-$8.85 a share.