We recently compiled a list of the Top 10 Health Insurance Stocks To Buy. In this article, we are going to take a look at where Chubb Limited (NYSE:CB) stands against the other health insurance stocks.
The health insurance industry is constantly changing, driven by a movement towards consumer-driven healthcare, in which people actively control their own health and healthcare costs. In that sense, Fortune Business Insights projects that the global healthcare insurance market is estimated to be worth $2.14 trillion in 2024 and will grow from $2.32 trillion in 2025 to roughly $4.45 trillion by 2032, reflecting a 9.7% CAGR over the forecast period.
AI in Health Insurance
According to McKinsey, health insurers might benefit significantly from completely incorporating AI and automation into their business operations. The firm believes that for every $10 billion in revenue, insurers could save $150 million to $300 million in administrative costs and $380 million to $970 million in medical expenses. In addition, these technologies may create an additional $260 million to $1.24 billion in income.
That said, concerns regarding AI’s expanding role in health insurance, particularly around claim denials, have escalated in recent months, especially in light of the death of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. These concerns had previously pushed the Biden administration to establish optional operational agreements with insurers, payers, and providers in 2023. In 2024, an executive order was issued to create criteria and safeguards for AI implementation. However, in January of this year, the Trump administration revoked Biden’s AI mandate, proposing that a new action plan be developed by the middle of the year.
Commenting on the rising implementation of AI in health insurance, law firm Maynard Nexsen stated:
“The AI landscape continues to develop, and the regulations appear to be loosening — at least at the federal level. These changes have led to uncertainty among organizations using AI technology.”
Medicaid Concerns
Medicaid, the nation’s largest health insurance program, which covers more than 70 million people, could be slashed under House Republican proposals. Lawmakers are proposing cutbacks of up to $2.3 trillion over the next decade to help fund border security and extend President Trump’s 2017 tax cuts. As the government works to decrease federal debt while maintaining expenditure commitments, Medicaid remains a key priority. To further expand on the implications of such a move, it should be noted that the Affordable Care Act (ACA) has considerably expanded the program’s scope and expense, making it the principal provider of comprehensive health and long-term care for one in every five Americans and accounting for approximately $1 out of every $5 spent on healthcare.
Furthermore, House Republicans just passed a budget by a slim margin, requiring the Energy and Commerce Committee, in charge of federal healthcare, to reduce $880 billion in expenditures. The reductions are designed to help support Trump’s tax cuts, mass deportations, and defense spending.
Our Methodology
For our list of the best health insurance stocks to buy, we started with a list of stocks pulled from ETFs, stock screeners, and web rankings. We then utilized Insider Monkey’s Q4 2024 database to discover the top ten stocks held by hedge funds. The list is organized in ascending order of hedge fund sentiment around each stock.
Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 373.4% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 218 percentage points (see more details here).
A close-up of an insurance agent’s hand pointing to a marine insurance policy, highlighting the company’s expertise in marine coverage.
Chubb Limited (NYSE:CB)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 53
Chubb Limited (NYSE:CB) is a multinational insurance company that provides a wide range of insurance and reinsurance products to people, corporations, and other entities worldwide. Chubb Limited’s (NYSE:CB) Health Shield insurance coverage addresses primary health benefits and needs for both individuals and families.
On March 5, HSBC analyst Vikram Gandhi upgraded Chubb Limited (NYSE:CB) from Hold to Buy, increasing his price objective from $298 to $323. The improvement highlights Chubb’s strategic expansion in reinsurance over the last year, as well as its efforts to improve certain sectors of its North American commercial insurance portfolio. Gandhi also emphasized the company’s strong emphasis on the mid-market and SME segments in North America, as well as its development into foreign life insurance and retail property and casualty (P&C) offerings.
Moreover, Chubb Limited (NYSE:CB) reported strong financial results for the fourth quarter of 2024, with core operating income of $2.5 billion, or a 10.5% rise per share. The company achieved record performance in the property and casualty underwriting, investment income, and life insurance areas. In addition, Chubb announced its plan to buy Liberty Mutual’s property and casualty insurance operations in Thailand and Vietnam, with net premiums written totaling about $275 million in 2024.
The London Company Large Cap Strategy stated the following regarding Chubb Limited (NYSE:CB) in its Q3 2024 investor letter:
Initiated: Chubb Limited (NYSE:CB) – CB engages in the provision of commercial and personal property and casualty insurance, personal accident and health (A&H), reinsurance, and life insurance. While the company is headquartered outside the U.S., roughly 2/3 of its profits are generated in the U.S. with Asian markets representing another 20% of earnings. CB has a portfolio of top-performing, multibillion-dollar businesses that have substantial scale and yet potential for growth. CB has a culture of superior underwriting discipline, and management has a strong track record of expense control. CB also has a well-balanced mix of business by customer and product, with extensive distribution channels. We are attracted to CB’s globally diversified business model, superior underwriting and expense management, consistent and best-in-class profitability, upside potential from growth in Asia, and the potential to benefit from higher interest rates in its investment portfolio.
Overall CB ranks 10th on our list of the top health insurance stocks to buy. While we acknowledge the potential of CB as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that certain AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns, and doing so within a shorter time frame. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than CB but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.
READ NEXT: 20 Best AI Stocks To Buy Now and 30 Best Stocks to Buy Now According to Billionaires.
Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.