WellPoint Profit Falls in 2Q

INDIANAPOLIS, IN (TheStreet) -- WellPoint(WLP) battled rising unemployment numbers during the second quarter as its profit and sales took a dip.

On Wednesday, the managed-care operator said that net income fell to $693.5 million, or $1.43 per share, from $750.5 million, or $1.44 per share in the year-earlier period. WellPoint reported net investment losses of 7 cents and 3 cents per share in each respective quarter.

According to a press release, total revenues also slipped to $15.4 billion from $15.7 billion last year.

A group of analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters anticipated the company would report earnings per share at $1.43 along with $15.4 billion in revenue.

Medical enrollment also fell to 34.2 million members, which was down 3% from the year-earlier quarter largely due to job cuts.

Looking forward, the company adjusted its 2009 EPS guidance, saying profit should range between $5.06 and $5.12 per share, with net realized investment losses coming to 54 cents per share. In its first quarter announcement, the company predicted net income to range between $5.14 and $5.20 per share, with net realized investment losses totaling 46 cents per share. Revenue, which before was expected to come to $61.2 billion, is now expected to land around $60.6 billion.

--Reported by Sung Moss in New York.

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