UnitedHealth shares plunges as insurer suspends guidance, announces CEO departure

 UnitedHealth (NYSE:UNH) has suspended its full-year financial forecast due to a bigger-than-anticipated spike in medical costs, while CEO Andrew Witty has decided to step down from the helm of the company.

Shares in UnitedHealth tumbled by more than 14% as of 10:40AM ET.  The stock is down 36% year-to-date.

In a statement, UnitedHealth said Witty’s departure was due to personal reasons. Stephen Hemsley was appointed as Witty’s successor, effective immediately. 

Hemsley, who previously served as CEO from 2006 to 2017, will also remain Chairman. Witty will be a senior adviser to Hemsley, UnitedHealth added.  

"We see the replacement of [Witty] as a proactive step to address the combination of operational missteps and policy pressure," analysts at Bernstein said in a note to clients.

Witty had overseen a tumultuous time for the company, particularly after the shooting death late last year of Brian Thompson, who led its insurance arm. Earlier this month, UnitedHealth was sued by shareholders for allegedly covering up how the killing had impacted its operations.

The company has boosted spending on security for executives following Thompson’s death amid increased death threats. It is unclear if Witty’s departure is related.

Meanwhile, UnitedHealth said it had suspended its 2025 outlook, citing higher-than-estimated medical expenses related to many new beneficiaries from government-backed Medicare Advantage plans for older adults. Care activity has continued to accelerate and broaden out to "more types of benefit offerings than seen in the first quarter", the firm noted.

https://www.investing.com/news/stock-market-news/unitedhealth-shares-slump-as-insurer-suspends-guidance-announces-ceo-departure-4041391

GRAIL And Athenahealth Partner To Streamline Galleri Multi-Cancer Test Ordering

 GRAIL, Inc. (GRAL) has announced a partnership with athenahealth to integrate the ordering of its Galleri multi-cancer early detection or MCED test into athena Coordinator Core, a care coordination service that is part of athenahealth's cloud-based electronic health record or EHR platform, athenaOne.

The integration will allow more than 160,000 clinicians on the athenahealth network to order the Galleri test directly within their existing EHR workflows, simplifying the process for both healthcare providers and patients.

Test results will be returned directly to the patient's chart, minimizing administrative burden and manual data entry.

The Galleri test uses a single blood draw to detect shared cancer signals across more than 50 types of cancer, including many that lack standard screening methods.

It identifies DNA fragments shed by tumors into the bloodstream, acting as a "fingerprint" to detect the presence of cancer and predict its tissue of origin.

The test is intended for use in adults with an elevated risk of cancer, especially those aged 50 and older.

https://www.nasdaq.com/articles/grail-and-athenahealth-partner-streamline-galleri-multi-cancer-test-ordering

Halozyme stock rating cut to Underperform at Leerink

 On Tuesday, Leerink Partners issued a downgrade for Halozyme Therapeutics (NASDAQ:HALO) stock, changing its rating from Market Perform to Underperform. The firm also reduced its price target to $47.00 from the previous $63.00. According to InvestingPro data, Halozyme has demonstrated strong financial performance with a 76% gross margin and 25.65% revenue growth in the last twelve months, maintaining a perfect Piotroski Score of 9, indicating excellent financial strength. The adjustment followed a reassessment of the discounted cash flow (DCF) model used by the firm, which now includes a higher discount rate, up from 8% to 12%, and a lower terminal growth rate, dropping from -15% to -25%.

The revision in Halozyme’s stock outlook is primarily due to new draft guidance from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) regarding drug price controls set by the 2028 Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). The guidance suggests that combination products, which may include Halozyme’s hyaluronidase drug collaborations, could be subject to price negotiations 13 years after the approval of the original active ingredient rather than 13 years after the approval of the combination product.

Leerink Partners has also adjusted its stance on Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ), downgrading the stock from Outperform to Market Perform and lowering the price target from $169 to $153. This new target is based on a 14x multiple of the unchanged 2026 estimated earnings per share (EPS) of $10.89. The firm has not made any changes to its revenue projections at this time, as it awaits final guidance from CMS expected in the second half of 2025.

https://www.investing.com/news/analyst-ratings/halozyme-stock-rating-cut-to-underperform-at-leerink-partners-93CH-4042144

Hinge Health aims to raise up to $437 million in IPO, pricing at $28 to $32

 Hinge Health said in a filing on Tuesday that it plans to raise up to $437 million in its upcoming initial public offering.

The digital physical therapy startup filed its initial prospectus in March, and it updated the document with an expected pricing range for its Class A common stock of $28 to $32 per share. Hinge said it plans to sell about 13.7 million shares in the offering.

Based on the number of Class A and Class B shares outstanding after the offering, the deal would value the company at $2.42 billion in the middle of the range, though that number could be higher on a fully diluted basis.

Hinge, founded in 2014, uses software to help patients treat acute musculoskeletal injuries, chronic pain and carry out post-surgery rehabilitation remotely. The company was co-founded by CEO Daniel Perez and Executive Chairman Gabriel Mecklenburg, who have both experienced personal struggles with physical rehabilitation.

Three weeks after Hinge filed its initial prospectus, President Donald Trump announced a sweeping tariff policy that plunged U.S. markets into turmoil. That volatility has caused several companies, including online lender Klarna and ticket marketplace StubHub, to delay their long-awaited IPOs.

Hinge is forging ahead anyway, and a second digital health startup, virtual chronic care company Omada Health, filed to go public on Friday. Both IPOs will be closely watched by the digital health sector, which has been mostly devoid of public offerings since 2021.

During its first quarter, Hinge said that revenue climbed 50% to $123.8 million, up from $82.7 million during the same period last year. Hinge reported $117.3 million in revenue during its fourth quarter, up 44% from the same period in 2023. 

The company plans to trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol “HNGE.”

Hinge has raised more than $1 billion from investors including Tiger Global Management and Coatue Management, and it boasted a $6.2 billion valuation as of October 2021, the last time the company raised outside funding. The biggest institutional shareholders are venture firms Insight Partners and Atomico, which own 19% and 15% of the stock, respectively, according to its prospectus.

https://www.cnbc.com/2025/05/13/hinge-health-ipo-share-pricing.html

Achieve plans NDA submission

 Reiterates Planned Submission of an NDA for Cytisinicline to FDA in June 2025

Company to Host Conference Call at 8:30 AM EDT Today, Tuesday, May 13, 2025

Recent Highlights

• Announced publication of the second Phase 3 ORCA-3 trial results in the Journal of American Medical Association (JAMA) Internal Medicine that evaluated cytisinicline for smoking cessation in 792 U.S. adults
• Reached key requirements in the ORCA-OL long-term exposure trial including safety exposure data for ≥300 participants receiving six months and at least 100 participants receiving one year of cumulative cytisinicline treatment
• Completed third safety review of the ORCA-OL clinical trial with the Data Safety Monitoring Committee (DSMC), which did not identify any safety concerns with longer-term cytisinicline exposure
• Conducted a Science Advisory Board (SAB) meeting with leading experts in nicotine and tobacco cessation research

Conference Call Details
Achieve will host a conference call at 8:30 am EDT today, Tuesday, May 13, 2025. To access the webcast, please use the following link: 1Q25 Earnings Webcast. Alternatively, you may access the live conference call by dialing 877-269-7756 (U.S. & Canada) or 201-689-7817 (International), referencing conference ID 13752599. A webcast replay will be available approximately three hours after the call and archived on the website for 90 days.

https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2025/05/13/3079992/0/en/Achieve-Life-Sciences-Reports-First-Quarter-2025-Financial-Results-and-Highlights-Updates-in-Cytisinicline-Program.html

Acadia: largest bed expansion

 Acadia Healthcare (NASDAQ:ACHC) shares rose in post market trading after it reported first quarter revenue and profit above expectations.

The company posted a first quarter revenue of $770.5M, compared to a consensus of $769.84M. The quarterly adjusted profit of $0.40 per share also beat analysts' estimate of $0.36 per share.

The healthcare facilities provider also saw its same facility revenue rise 2.1% year-over-year.

"This year is setting up to be the largest bed expansion year in Acadia’s history, building upon our record-breaking bed additions in 2024," chief executive officer, Chris Hunter, said in a statement.

The company also affirmed its full year guidance.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/topstocks/acadia-healthcare-rises-on-q1-revenue-profit-beat/ar-AA1EDVyU?ocid=finance-verthp-feeds

Humacyte eyes Symvess expansion

Humacyte (Nasdaq: HUMA) reported Q1 2025 financial results and key business updates. The company achieved a major milestone with the commercial launch of Symvess™, its bioengineered vascular tissue product, generating first commercial sales of $147,000. Total revenue was $517,000, including $370,000 from a research collaboration. The company completed a $46.7 million public offering and implemented cost reductions, including a workforce reduction of 31 employees, targeting savings of $13.8 million in 2025 and up to $38 million in 2026. Currently, 45 hospitals have initiated the Value Analysis Committee approval process for Symvess, representing about 25% of all Level 1 trauma centers. The company reported net income of $39.1 million for Q1 2025, compared to a net loss of $31.9 million in Q1 2024, primarily due to non-cash remeasurement of contingent earnout liability. Cash position stood at $113.2 million as of March 31, 2025.

https://www.stocktitan.net/news/HUMA/humacyte-announces-first-quarter-2025-financial-results-and-provides-awjfqtad3w8n.html