UnitedHealth stock plummets after its CEO abruptly steps aside

Thibault Spirlet

Tue, May 13, 2025, 2:47 PM 1 min read

• UnitedHealth CEO Andrew Witty abruptly stepped down connected Tuesday, sending shares down much than 12%.

• Witty is being replaced by Stephen Hemsley, UnitedHealth's erstwhile boss, with contiguous effect.

• The institution besides said it would suspend its 2025 fiscal outlook, citing precocious aesculapian costs.

UnitedHealth Group's stock terms tumbled Tuesday aft it announced its CEO's abrupt departure from the healthcare giant.

Andrew Witty, who became UnitedHealth's CEO successful 2021, is leaving the institution with contiguous effect and being replaced by erstwhile CEO Stephen Hemsley, who led it betwixt 2006 and 2017.

Witty, who antecedently led the pharma elephantine GSK, is leaving due to the fact that of idiosyncratic reasons, the institution said successful its announcement.

UnitedHealth besides suspended its 2025 fiscal outlook, citing unexpectedly precocious aesculapian expenditures, peculiarly successful its Medicare Advantage segment.

Shares fell much than 12% successful the archetypal fewer minutes of trading connected Tuesday morning. The banal had already sunk by one-quarter this twelvemonth aft the institution suspended its yearly guidance past month.

The insurer is grappling with rising attraction usage and broader payment usage than it had expected.

UnitedHealth said it expected to instrumentality to maturation successful 2026.

It is the genitor institution of UnitedHealthcare, whose CEO, Brian Thompson, was changeable dormant successful New York late past year. Luigi Mangione was indicted connected charges of first-degree execution successful transportation with the case.

UnitedHealthcare is the largest wellness insurer successful the US and provides services to immoderate 50 cardinal people.

Read the archetypal nonfiction connected Business Insider