Centene Corporation posted a $71 million loss in the third quarter of 2026, according to its earnings report released Tuesday.
The company slimmed its losses significantly year-over-year, as it posted a $6.6 billion loss in Q3 2025 following a $6.7 billion non-cash goodwill impairment charge. Through three quarters, Centene is in the black with $2.6 billion in profit, compared to a $5.6 billion loss across the first nine months of 2025.
Revenues in the third quarter were $50.6 billion, up from $49.7 billion a year ago. Across the first nine months of 2026, Centene has brought in $154.2 billion in revenue, up from $145.1 billion in the first three quarters of 2025.
Both revenue and earnings for the third quarter surpassed Wall Street analysts' predictions, per Zacks Investment Research.
The medical loss ratio in Q3 was 92.7%, on par with the prior-year quarter. Centene said that the figure was better than expected and reflected improvements in its Medicare Advantage unit. Medicaid and marketplace MLR are "on track," according to the report.
The company expects a full-year MLR of 90.8%.
"Solid underlying fundamentals within our core businesses have powered a faster recovery to our earnings trajectory than previously anticipated," Centene CEO Sarah London said in the earnings release. "We are pleased with the progress our teams have made in delivering increased margin to power our mission of transforming the health of the communities we serve, one person at a time."
"We remain focused on a strong finish to 2026 and building on this progress in 2027," London said.
Centene also reported total membership of 25.7 million in the third quarter, down slightly from the Q2 tally of 25.9 million and significantly from the 27.6 million members the company had at the end of 2025.
Most of those declines have been recorded in the marketplace business, per the report, which had 3.4 million enrollees as of Q3. Centene also reported 10.5 million people are enrolled in its Medicaid coverage.
Given the third quarter performance, Centene is boosting its outlook for both earnings and revenue, and now expects to at least $5.20 in earnings per share for 2026. Revenues are expected to fall between $196.5 billion and $200 billion for the year, according to the report.