Elevance Health
Consolidated Enterprise Highlights
(Unaudited)
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(In billions) | | Three Months Ended | | | Twelve Months Ended | |
| | December 31, 2023 | | | December 31, 2022 | | | September 30, 2023 | | | December 31, 2023 | | | December 31, 2022 | |
Operating Revenue1 | | $ | 42.5 | | | $ | 39.7 | | | $ | 42.5 | | | $ | 170.2 | | | $ | 155.7 | |
Operating Gain1,2,3 | | $ | 1.3 | | | $ | 1.3 | | | $ | 1.8 | | | $ | 8.5 | | | $ | 8.3 | |
Operating Margin1 | | | 3.0 | % | | | 3.2 | % | | | 4.1 | % | | | 5.0 | % | | | 5.3 | % |
1. | See “Basis of Presentation” on page 5 herein. |
2. | Operating Gain for the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022 include items that are excluded from adjusted shareholders’ net income. See “GAAP Reconciliation” on pages 13 and 14 herein. |
3. | Operating Gain for the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2022 have been restated. See “GAAP Reconciliation” on pages 13 and 14 herein. |
Operating revenue was $42.5 billion in the fourth quarter of 2023, an increase of $2.8 billion, or 7 percent compared to fourth quarter 2022. Operating revenue was $170.2 billion in 2023, an increase of $14.5 billion, or 9 percent. The increase in the quarter and year was driven by higher premium revenue in our Health Benefits segment and growth in pharmacy product revenue in CarelonRx.
The benefit expense ratio was 89.2 percent in the fourth quarter, an improvement of 50 basis points compared to fourth quarter 2022, and 87.0 percent for the full year, an improvement of 60 basis points year-over-year. The improvement in the quarter and year was driven by premium rate adjustments to cover medical cost trend. Days in Claims Payable was 47.3 days as of December 31, 2023, a decrease of 1.3 days from September 30, 2023, and a decrease of 0.2 days compared to December 31, 2022.
The operating expense ratio was 11.8 percent both in the fourth quarter and for the full year of 2023, an increase of 30 basis points as compared to the fourth quarter of 2022 and an increase of 40 basis points year-over-year. The increase in the quarter was driven by an acceleration of investments for growth and the increase for the full year was driven by business optimization charges recorded in 2023.
Cash Flow & Balance Sheet
Operating cash flow for 2023 was $8.1 billion, or 1.3 times GAAP net income. As of December 31, 2023, cash and investments at the parent company totaled approximately $1.6 billion.
During the fourth quarter of 2023, the Company repurchased 2.0 million shares of its common stock for $929 million, at a weighted average price of $465.63. For the full year of 2023, the Company repurchased 5.8 million shares of its common stock for $2.7 billion, at a weighted average price of $463.53. As of December 31, 2023, the Company had approximately $4.2 billion of Board approved share repurchase authorization remaining. During the fourth quarter of 2023, the Company paid a quarterly dividend of $1.48 per share, representing a distribution of cash totaling $346 million.
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