{"podcast":{"title":"Charged Alpha Stock Encyclopedia","slug":"charged-alpha-stock-encyclopedia-7819792","podcast_index_feed_id":7819792,"rss_url":"https://feed.podbean.com/chargedalpha/feed.xml","website_url":"https://chargedalpha.podbean.com","image_url":"https://pbcdn1.podbean.com/imglogo/image-logo/22241603/charged_alpha_logo_2048.png","author":"Colton Thomas","episode_count":1034,"summary":"Charged Alpha reviews earnings for each stock in the Russel 1000 every quarter. Each podcast gives thorough analysis, along with an in-depth profile in the beginning of the episode of the company, what they do, how they earn money and what to look for.","last_synced_at":"2026-07-18T10:20:29.083898+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/charged-alpha-stock-encyclopedia-7819792"},"episode":{"title":"ELV Stock: Elevance Beat AND Raised Guidance — So Why Did It Fall?","slug":"elv-stock-elevance-beat-and-raised-guidance-so-why-did-it-fall","published_at":"2026-07-16T23:35:19+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/charged-alpha-stock-encyclopedia-7819792/elv-stock-elevance-beat-and-raised-guidance-so-why-did-it-fall","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/charged-alpha-stock-encyclopedia-7819792","url":"https://chargedalpha.podbean.com/e/elv-stock-elevance-beat-and-raised-guidance-%e2%80%94-so-why-did-it-fall/","audio_url":"https://mcdn.podbean.com/mf/web/65cxvpy42zj2de6k/audio_z.mp3","summary":"Elevance Health (ELV) Q2 2026 — Elevance Health (ELV), one of the largest U.S. health insurers (~46M members, formerly Anthem), reported Q2 2026 adjusted EPS of $7.45, crushing the $6.18 estimate (helped by Carelon pharmacy) — but that was down from $8.84 a year ago, and the stock FELL. Despite the beat, it RAISED full-year adjusted EPS guidance to at least $27.00. The problem: a rising medical loss ratio (surging medical costs) has earnings falling YoY, and the market doubts the beat is sustainable. The stock (~$373, ~14x forward) is ~15% off its $436 high, off a $274 low. Here's a puzzle: Elevance Health (formerly Anthem) — a ~46-million-member health-insurance giant — just beat earnings AND raised its full-year guidance to at least $27/share, and the stock fell anyway. Why? Because underneath the beat is a rising medical loss ratio: members are using more care than the company priced for, so margins are compressing and adjusted EPS ($7.45) is down sharply from $8.84 a year ago. The beat was against a lowered bar, and the market doubts it's sustainable. It's a sector-wide storm (utilization, Medicare Advantage, Medicaid) hitting all managed care. The bull case: a scaled, essential insurer at ~14x (a cyclical trough), with a growing fee-based Carelon arm, that just raised guidance — the Street sees ~17% upside ($438 target) if costs peak. The bear case: earnings are falling and the MLR is still rising. Our owner-earnings work lands near $390 (vs $373) — modest upside if costs normalize. Our call: HOLD, 3/5 — cheap and raising guidance, but medical costs are the swing. Watch the MLR; add near the lows. Not financial advice. THE CALL: HOLD (3/5, CHEAP AND RAISING GUIDANCE, BUT MEDICAL COSTS ARE THE SWING) — base-case value ~$390 vs ~$373 today. What to watch: the medica…","meta_description":"Elevance Health (ELV) Q2 2026 — Elevance Health (ELV), one of the largest U.S. health insurers (~46M members, formerly Anthem), reported Q2 2026 adjusted…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":819,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/charged-alpha-stock-encyclopedia-7819792/episodes/elv-stock-elevance-beat-and-raised-guidance-so-why-did-it-fall/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/charged-alpha-stock-encyclopedia-7819792/elv-stock-elevance-beat-and-raised-guidance-so-why-did-it-fall.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}