WELLPOINT'S PROFIT PICTURE IN THE PINK.Byline: Evan Pondel Staff Writer THOUSAND OAKS Thousand Oaks, residential city (1990 pop. 104,352), Ventura co., S Calif., in a farm area; inc. 1964. Avocados, citrus, vegetables, strawberries, and nursery products are grown. - WellPoint Health Networks Inc. surpassed analysts' expectations Monday, as the insurer An individual or company who, through a contractual agreement, undertakes to compensate specified losses, liability, or damages incurred by another individual. An insurer is frequently an insurance company and is also known as an underwriter. posted a 23 percent rise in fourth-quarter profits, stoked stoked adj. Slang 1. Exhilarated or excited. 2. Being or feeling high or intoxicated, especially from a drug. by strong membership. ``This clearly shows they continue to offer competitively priced products,'' said Peter Costa This article is about the professional poker player. For the former child actor, see Peter Costa (actor). Peter "The Poet" Costa (born January 17 1956 in Cyprus) to Greek Cypriot parents is a British professional poker player based in Las Vegas, , analyst with ABN Amro ABN AMRO Algemene Bank Nederland-Amsterdam Roterdam Bank (Dutch bank) Inc. in Boston. WellPoint's medical plans boasted membership of more than 10.1 million at the end of 2001, compared with 7.9 million at the end of 2000. The Thousand Oaks-based company said the increase in membership stems from the sales growth and acquisition of Blue Cross Blue Shield Blue Shield A US not-for-profit health care insurer that is a reimbursement intermediary for physicians. Cf Blue Cross. of Georgia in March. In the past four months, the company has acquired Right Choice in St. Louis, Maryland based-CareFirst and MethodistCare in Texas. ``Our continued success also reflects the company's ability to deliver value to our customers by offering innovative, choice-based products,'' said Leonard Schaeffer, chairman and chief executive officer. WellPoint recorded net income of $109.9 million in the quarter, or $1.65 a share, versus a profit of $89.5 million, or $1.37 a share, a year ago. Analysts polled by Thomson Financial/First Call anticipated WellPoint would earn $1.59 a share. ``I expect them to remain strong for the rest of the year. Their revenues look very good,'' Costa said. Revenues jumped 40.2 percent to $3.4 billion in the quarter. The leap in sales is the outcome of WellPoint's aggressive campaign to tap lucrative markets, Costa said. WellPoint shares rose $1.30, or 1 percent, to $127.29 on Monday. |
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