MOH Q2 Earnings Beat on Lower Operating Expenses, 2026 EPS View Raised

Second-quarter earnings benefited from lower operating expenses. However, lower premium revenues, declining membership, and weaker investment income weighed on its performance.

Molina Healthcare, Inc Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

MOH’s Q2 Operational Update

Premium revenues of $10.2 billion decreased 5.7% year over year and missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 1.8%. The decline primarily reflected lower membership levels, partially offset by pricing actions.

As of June 30, 2026, total membership decreased 14.3% year over year to around 4.9 million and missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 1.6%. The health insurer witnessed a year-over-year decrease in customers across all segments, especially in Marketplace and Other.

Investment income declined 4.7% year over year to $101 million. The figure beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 1.8%.

Total operating expenses were $10.7 billion, down 2.9% year over year and slightly below our model estimate of $11 billion, driven by lower medical care costs. The adjusted general and administrative expense ratio increased to 6.5% from 6.1% a year ago. Interest expense increased 12.5% year over year to $54 million.

The consolidated MCR (medical costs as a percentage of premium revenues) was 92.2% in the reported quarter. It rose from 90.4% a year ago but was marginally below the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 92.5%.

Molina Healthcare’s adjusted net income decreased 73.8% year over year to $77 million.

MOH’s Q2 Financial Update

Molina Healthcare exited the second quarter with cash and cash equivalents of $5 billion, which increased from the 2025-end level of $4.2 billion. Total assets of $16 billion rose from $15.6 billion as of 2025-end.

Long-term debt totaled $3.8 billion, which remained unchanged from the 2025-end level.

Total stockholders’ equity of $4.2 billion inched up from $4.1 billion at the end of 2025.

Net cash provided by operating activities was $788 million compared to net cash used in operating activities of $112 million in the prior-year period.

MOH’s 2026 Guidance

The company's full-year 2026 premium revenue guidance has remained unchanged at about $42 billion, down roughly 2% from 2025.

Management expects 2026 GAAP earnings of at least $2.15 per diluted share, up from its previous guidance of at least $1.90. It also raised its full-year 2026 adjusted earnings guidance by $0.25 to at least $5.25 per diluted share.

MOH raised its 2026 adjusted net income guidance to $268 million from $256 million. It also increased its GAAP net income guidance to $110 million from the previous estimate of $97 million.

MOH’s Zacks Rank & Key Picks

Molina currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

Some better-ranked stocks in the broader Medical space are Humana Inc. HUM, currently sporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), and CVS Health Corporation CVS and Cencora, Inc. COR, both carrying a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Humana is set to report second-quarter 2026 results on July 29, before the market closes. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings is pegged at $6.22 per share, which has witnessed three upward revisions over the past 60 days, with no movement in the opposite direction. The company beat on earnings in three of the trailing four quarters and missed once, with the average surprise being 3.8%. The consensus estimate for Humana’s second-quarter revenues is pinned at $40.65 billion, indicating a 25.5% year-over-year increase.

CVS Health is set to report second-quarter 2026 results on Aug. 5, before the market closes. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings is pegged at $1.87 per share, indicating a 3.3% year-over-year increase. The company beat on earnings in each of the trailing four quarters, with the average surprise being 16.8%. The consensus estimate for CVS Health’s second-quarter revenues is pinned at $100.18 billion, indicating a 1.3% year-over-year increase.

Cencora is set to report second-quarter 2026 results on Aug. 5, before the market closes. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings is pegged at $4.37 per share, indicating a 9.3% year-over-year increase. The company beat on earnings in three of the trailing four quarters and missed once, with the average surprise being 1.6%. The consensus estimate for Cencora’s second-quarter revenues is pinned at $84.89 billion, indicating a 5.2% year-over-year increase.

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