Oscar Health Inc is a healthcare technology company built around a full stack technology platform and a relentless focus on serving its members... Show more
Oscar Health's third-quarter results mark a key checkpoint in what management has called the strongest year in the company's history. The insurer operates primarily in the Affordable Care Act (ACA) individual market, where pricing discipline, membership growth, and administrative efficiency directly shape profitability. After a challenging 2025 reset year, Oscar entered 2026 with sharply improved margins, and its quarterly earnings have become a barometer for how well its pricing strategy and technology investments are paying off. For investors, this report matters because it tests whether recent profitability gains are durable or partly driven by one-time or timing-related items such as risk-adjustment revisions.
For the third quarter ended September 30, 2026, Oscar Health reported total revenue of approximately $5.14 billion, an increase of about 70% from roughly $2.99 billion in the year-ago quarter, driven by rate increases and higher membership. Net income attributable to Oscar Health was about $167 million, compared with a net loss of roughly $137 million a year earlier. Diluted earnings per share came to approximately $0.49, well above the consensus expectation of a roughly $0.11 loss.
The company ended the quarter with about 2.7 million members, up 27% year over year. The medical loss ratio improved 450 basis points to 84%, while the selling, general, and administrative (SG&A) expense ratio fell to 14%, the lowest in company history. Earnings from operations were $178 million, and adjusted EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) was $207 million. Notably, updated risk-adjustment data from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) contributed a $250 million revenue benefit in the quarter.
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Heading into the report, Oscar Health shares had already climbed more than 25% since its August earnings release, reflecting elevated investor expectations. Although the headline results handily beat consensus, the stock's post-earnings reaction was measured, as investors scrutinized the quality of the beat. The $250 million risk-adjustment benefit exceeded the quarter's entire $178 million in earnings from operations, raising questions about how much of the profitability is recurring. Analysts also noted that the fourth quarter could swing back to an operating loss under the new full-year guidance, tempering enthusiasm around the strong top-line growth and record-low expense ratios.
Management raised its full-year 2026 outlook, now expecting revenue of $19.0 billion to $19.3 billion, a full-year medical loss ratio of 80.5% to 81.5%, and earnings from operations of $850 million to $950 million. The company also expects to end 2026 with about 2.5 million members, reflecting additional disenrollments from an industry-wide CMS eligibility review.
Investors should watch how the medical loss ratio trends through the fourth quarter, given the seasonal pattern of members working through deductibles. Elevated outpatient utilization remains a point of attention, as does whether risk-adjustment accruals hold up under the company's stated cautious approach to reserves.
Looking further ahead, Oscar is entering the 2027 open-enrollment period with a roughly 24% larger footprint across 713 counties and a weighted average rate increase of approximately 14%, reflecting elevated cost trends and market morbidity. The long-term target of at least $4 in earnings per share by 2029 will also depend on continued membership growth and expense discipline.
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