By Dave Sebastian

Anthem Inc. said its profit for the fourth quarter fell despite higher revenue as the return of the health-insurance tax drove expenses up and non-Covid-19 health-care activity remained lower during the pandemic.

The health insurer on Wednesday posted net income of $551 million, or $2.19 a share, compared with $934 million, or $3.62 a share, in the year-ago period.

Adjusted earnings were $2.54 a share. Analysts polled by FactSet were expecting $2.53 a share.

The medical-loss ratio, the share of premiums the insurer pays out in claims, was 88.9% for the quarter, compared with 89% in the prior-year quarter due to lower non-Covid health-care activity during the pandemic. Analysts were expecting 89.9%.

Revenue rose 16% to $31.82 billion from $27.41 billion, driven by growth in Medicaid and Medicare, as well as pharmacy-product revenue related to IngenioRx. Analysts were looking for $30.9 billion.

Expenses grew 19% to $31.21 billion, partly driven by the return of the health-insurance tax.

The company had about 42.9 million members as of Dec. 31, up 4.7% from the year-ago period.

Write to Dave Sebastian at dave.sebastian@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

01-27-21 0634ET