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UnitedHealth

UnitedHealth's revenue grew in 2025 while its profit fell for a second year

Total revenues rose 11.8% to $447.6B, but net earnings fell 16.3% to $12.1B, from $22.4B in 2023. Optum Health posted an operating loss of −$278M.

Key facts

In fiscal 2025, which ended Dec 31, 2025, UnitedHealth (NYSE: UNH) took in $447.6B of total revenues (up 11.8% on fiscal 2024); net earnings to UnitedHealth was $12.1B (down 16.3%). The most recent quarter, ended Jun 30, 2026, brought revenue of $112.0B, up 0.4% year over year, with net income of $5.5B. UnitedHealthcare was the biggest single line by segment (before eliminations): 56% of fiscal 2025 total revenues. Sources: 10-K for fiscal 2025 (filed Mar 2, 2026) and 10-Q for the quarter ended Jun 30, 2026 (filed Aug 10, 2026).

Revenue$447.6BFY2025 · +11.8% vs FY2024
Net earnings to UnitedHealth$12.1BFY2025 · −16.3% vs FY2024
Operating cash flow$19.7BFY2025 · −18.6% vs FY2024
Cash & equivalents$28.6Bat Jun 30, 2026 · +17.3% vs FY2025 end
Total debt$73.3Bat Jun 30, 2026 · −6.5% vs FY2025 end
Diluted shares911MFY2025 avg · −1.9% vs FY2024
Total revenues and net earnings to UnitedHealth, three fiscal yearsBy fiscal year, $bn
Total revenuesNet earnings to UnitedHealth
Total revenues and net earnings to UnitedHealth by fiscal yearTotal revenues FY2023: $371.6B371.6Net earnings to UnitedHealth FY2023: $22.4B22.4FY2023Total revenues FY2024: $400.3B400.3Net earnings to UnitedHealth FY2024: $14.4B14.4FY2024Total revenues FY2025: $447.6B447.6Net earnings to UnitedHealth FY2025: $12.1B12.1FY2025

Source: 10-K FY2025, filed Mar 2, 2026

Quarterly total revenues: fiscal 2026 vs a year earlierFiscal Q1–Q2, $bn (each quarter from that quarter's 10-Q)
FY2025FY2026
Quarterly total revenues, fiscal 2026 vs 2025FY2025 Q1: $109.6B109.6FY2026 Q1: $111.7B111.7Q1FY2025 Q2: $111.6B111.6FY2026 Q2: $112.0B112.0Q2

Source: 10-Q filed May 5, 2026 · 10-Q filed Aug 10, 2026

How it makes money

FY2025 total by categoryUnitedHealthcare: $344.9B (56%)Optum Rx: $154.7B (25%)Optum Health: $102.0B (16%)Optum Insight: $19.4B (3%)$621.0BFY2025 total

By segment (before eliminations), FY2025

  • LineAmountSharevs FY2024
  • UnitedHealthcare$344.9B56%+15.7%
  • Optum Rx$154.7B25%+16.1%
  • Optum Health$102.0B16%−3.2%
  • Optum Insight$19.4B3%+3.5%

Source: 10-K FY2025, XBRL breakdown

Before eliminations, UnitedHealthcare brought in $344.9B in 2025, Optum Rx $154.7B, Optum Health $102.0B and Optum Insight $19.4B. Earnings from operations were $9.4B at UnitedHealthcare, down 39.5%, and $7.2B at Optum Rx, up 23.3%.

By segment (before eliminations): three-year mixShare of the total each fiscal year
UnitedHealthcareOptum RxOptum HealthOptum Insight

Source: 10-K FY2025

Earnings from operations by segment, FY2025

UnitedHealthcare$9.4B−39.5%
Optum Rx$7.2B+23.3%
Optum Health−$278M
Optum Insight$2.6B−15.3%

Negative values are operating losses. Last column: change from FY2024 where both years are profits.

What changed last quarter

How the quarter compared with a year earlier

Comparing Q2 2026 (Apr to Jun 2026) compared with Q2 2025 (Apr to Jun 2025)

Each pair of bars shows the dollar amount for both quarters. Longer bar, more money. Bars in a group share one scale.

Q2 2026Q2 2025

Company

Revenue
$112.0B Q2 2026
$111.6B Q2 2025
0.4% increase
Net income
$5.5B Q2 2026
$3.4B Q2 2025
61.0% increase

Source: UnitedHealth 10-Q for the quarter ended Jun 30, 2026, filed Aug 10, 2026

By segment

UnitedHealthcare
$86.0B Q2 2026
$86.1B Q2 2025
0.1% decrease

Source: UnitedHealth 10-Q for the quarter ended Jun 30, 2026, filed Aug 10, 2026

  • Cash & equivalents $28.6B at Jun 30, 2026, vs $24.4B at FY2025 end.
  • Total debt $73.3B at Jun 30, 2026, vs $78.4B at FY2025 end.
  • Operating cash flow, first 6 months of fiscal 2026: $20.0B vs $12.6B a year earlier.

The bull case and the bear case

The bull case

The bear case

  • Net earnings fell 16.3% in 2025 to $12.1B, after falling 35.6% the year before. 10-K, FY2025
  • UnitedHealthcare's earnings from operations fell 39.5% in 2025 to $9.4B, and Optum Health swung to an operating loss of −$278M. 10-K, FY2025
  • Revenue in the quarter ended Jun 30, 2026 was $112.0B, up only 0.4% on a year earlier. 10-Q, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
  • The 10-K says that relatively small differences between predicted and actual medical costs can lead to significant changes in its results. 10-K, Item 1A

What optimists and skeptics tend to point to, each tied to a filing. Ticker Sage doesn't pick a side, and neither list is a reason to buy or sell.

What the company does

UnitedHealth Group runs UnitedHealthcare, a large US health insurer, and Optum, which provides care, pharmacy benefit and health data services.

UnitedHealth has four reportable segments. UnitedHealthcare offers health benefit plans for employers and individuals, Medicare and retirement, and Medicaid (Community & State). Optum Health provides care through clinics, physicians and home and behavioral services. Optum Insight sells data, analytics, technology and services to hospitals, payers and others. Optum Rx manages pharmacy benefits and runs pharmacies.

The Optum businesses sell a lot to UnitedHealthcare, so segment revenues add up to more than the company total; those internal sales are eliminated. Its fiscal year is the calendar year.

Source: 10-K, Item 1 Business

Main risks the company lists

Our plain-English paraphrase of the risk factors in UnitedHealth's latest 10-K. Read the original for the full list.

  1. Medical costsIf medical costs or use of services run above what it priced for, profits on its insurance plans fall.
  2. Government programsMedicare Advantage, Medicaid and other government business depend on rates, rules and audits it doesn't control.
  3. Regulation and investigationsHealth care is heavily regulated, and government investigations and lawsuits can lead to fines or changes in how it operates.
  4. CompetitionIt competes with other insurers, care providers and pharmacy benefit managers.
  5. Cyber and dataIt holds large amounts of sensitive data, and cyberattacks or outages can disrupt its businesses.
  6. Pharmacy benefitsChanges to drug pricing, rebates and pharmacy rules could hurt Optum Rx.
  7. ReputationPublic and political scrutiny of health insurers can affect customers and policy.

Source: 10-K, Item 1A Risk Factors (the full list, in the company's words)

Three years of key numbers

Every number links to its filing; hover for the XBRL tag. A dash means the number isn't cleanly available, and we don't estimate it.

US$FY2023FY2024FY2025
Total revenues$371.6B$400.3B$447.6B
Net earnings to UnitedHealth$22.4B$14.4B$12.1B
Operating cash flow$29.1B$24.2B$19.7B
Cash & equivalents (year end)$25.4B$25.3B$24.4B
Total debt (year end)$62.5B$76.9B$78.4B
Diluted shares938M929M911M
  • Total revenues: Insurance premiums plus product sales (mostly pharmacy), services and investment income.
  • Net earnings to UnitedHealth: Earnings attributable to UnitedHealth Group common shareholders, after the share belonging to minority owners.
  • Operating cash flow: Cash the business brought in from its day-to-day operations during the year (cash flow statement).
  • Cash & equivalents: Cash and short-term investments that count as cash equivalents on the balance sheet. Excludes longer-dated marketable securities.
  • Total debt: Short-term borrowings and current maturities plus long-term debt, at carrying value.
  • Diluted shares: Weighted average shares outstanding for the year, including the effect of options and stock awards.

About these numbers

  • Segment revenue is shown before eliminations: the Optum businesses sell to UnitedHealthcare and to each other, so the segments add up to more than total revenues.
  • Net earnings are those attributable to UnitedHealth common shareholders, after noncontrolling interests.
  • The last-quarter changes compare UnitedHealthcare's revenue and earnings from operations; the 10-Q tags the Optum segments in a way that couldn't be matched cleanly, so they aren't shown there.

Recent filings

FormFiledPeriod
10-QAug 10, 2026Jun 30, 2026
10-QMay 5, 2026Mar 31, 2026
DEF 14AApr 21, 2026Jun 1, 2026
10-KMar 2, 2026Dec 31, 2025

Latest filings

  1. Oct 136:14 AM ET

    8-K

    UnitedHealth files an 8-K on quarterly results

    UnitedHealth filed a Form 8-K on Oct 13, 2026 at 6:14 AM ET under Item 2.02 (Results of Operations and Financial Condition).

  2. Oct 54:26 PM ET

    Form 4

    UnitedHealth director John H. Noseworthy reports an award of 240 shares

    The filing reports 240 shares in a grant or award (code A).

  3. Oct 54:25 PM ET

    Form 4

    UnitedHealth director Rice Valerie Md Montgomery reports an award of 257 shares

    The filing reports 257 shares in a grant or award (code A).

  4. Oct 54:25 PM ET

    Form 4

    UnitedHealth director Frederick William McNabb, Iii. reports an award of 291 shares

    The filing reports 291 shares in a grant or award (code A).

  5. Oct 54:25 PM ET

    Form 4

    UnitedHealth director Scott Gottlieb reports an award of 257 shares

    The filing reports 257 shares in a grant or award (code A).

All UnitedHealth filings notes →

Common questions about UnitedHealth

How does UnitedHealth make money?

In fiscal 2025, total revenues totaled $447.6B. Before eliminations, UnitedHealthcare brought in $344.9B in 2025, Optum Rx $154.7B, Optum Health $102.0B and Optum Insight $19.4B. Earnings from operations were $9.4B at UnitedHealthcare, down 39.5%, and $7.2B at Optum Rx, up 23.3%. Source: 10-K for fiscal 2025, filed Mar 2, 2026.

What was UnitedHealth's revenue in fiscal 2025?

Total revenues came to $447.6B in the year ended Dec 31, 2025. Going back two years, it was $371.6B in fiscal 2023 and $400.3B in fiscal 2024, so the latest year was up 11.8%. Source: 10-K for fiscal 2025, filed Mar 2, 2026.

Is UnitedHealth profitable?

Yes, by US accounting rules (GAAP): net earnings to UnitedHealth was $12.1B in fiscal 2025, down 16.3% from $14.4B a year earlier. For the quarter ended Jun 30, 2026, net income was $5.5B. The page's About these numbers section explains what is included. Source: 10-K for fiscal 2025, filed Mar 2, 2026.

What did UnitedHealth report in its latest quarterly filing?

The 10-Q for the quarter ended Jun 30, 2026 shows revenue of $112.0B, against $111.6B in the same quarter a year before (up 0.4%), and net income of $5.5B, against $3.4B (up 61.0%). Source: 10-Q for the quarter ended Jun 30, 2026, filed Aug 10, 2026.

How much cash and debt does UnitedHealth have?

On Jun 30, 2026, cash and cash equivalents stood at $28.6B and total debt at $73.3B. Total debt here is short-term borrowings and current maturities plus long-term debt, at carrying value. Source: 10-Q filed Aug 10, 2026.

What are the main risks UnitedHealth lists?

Item 1A of the fiscal 2025 10-K (filed Mar 2, 2026) sets out the risks. Grouped, they fall into 7 areas: Medical costs; government programs; regulation and investigations; competition; cyber and data; pharmacy benefits; reputation. To start with the first: If medical costs or use of services run above what it priced for, profits on its insurance plans fall. Source: 10-K, Item 1A Risk Factors.

Where do these UnitedHealth numbers come from?

Two filings UnitedHealth made with the SEC: its fiscal 2025 10-K, filed Mar 2, 2026, and its 10-Q for the quarter ended Jun 30, 2026, filed Aug 10, 2026. The figures are taken from the XBRL data the SEC publishes, and every one links back to its source. Methodology explains how fiscal years and missing numbers are handled.

Disclosures

Editor holdings in UNH
The editor holds no position in UnitedHealth (UNH). As of Oct 25, 2026.
Trading rule
The editor does not buy or sell UNH from 3 days before to 3 days after this page is published or substantively updated.
Compensation
Nobody paid for this page. No affiliate links on this page.
Sources
The company's SEC filings, linked next to each number or, for charts, in the source line under them.
Last updated
Oct 25, 2026

General education, the same for every reader. Not a recommendation to buy, sell or hold UNH, and it doesn't consider your situation.

Compare with peers

CompanyFiscal yearRevenueRevenue growthNet income
UnitedHealthUNHFY2025$447.6B+11.8%$12.1B
CVS HealthCVSFY2025$402.1B+7.8%$1.8B
Johnson & JohnsonJNJFY2025$94.2B+6.0%$26.8B
MerckMRKFY2025$65.0B+1.3%$18.3B

Each row is that company’s latest fiscal year from its own 10-K, using its own revenue and net income lines. Fiscal years end in different months, and line definitions differ (banks, insurers and oil companies count revenue differently), so this is a rough side-by-side, not a like-for-like comparison.

More company files

New to filings? Learn lists the first explainer topics. Methodology & Disclosures covers where every number comes from.