utilization

“That is a great outcome – but it also means that the recovery in GDP growth began last year with the highest level of capacity utilization in any recovery over the past 40 years,” Hauser added.

Citi upgrades the stock to buy from neutral, citing the company’s high utilization rate and a gradual upward trend in gross margin.

Health insurers’ profits have been dragged down by higher medical costs, driven by a range of factors including more utilization of medical services and higher costs of pharmaceuticals.

The company’s vehicle utilization rate increases by two percentage points to 84%.

In its flagship Medicaid business, which represented about 75% of total premiums collected, the higher costs were driven by utilization of behavioral-health, pharmacy, long-term support and inpatient hospital services.