Agilon Health price target lowered to $9 from $13 at Benchmark

Benchmark lowered the firm’s price target on Agilon Health to $9 from $13 and keeps a Buy rating on the shares. Like most participants in Medicare Advantage, Agilon has struggled to adequately forecast for the cost trend that sharply accelerated in Q4 and has continued into Q1, though the market seemed to take the company’s “miss and lower” report in stride yesterday, the analyst tells investors. With reserves for 2024 now strengthened to the high end of internal estimates and nearly $500M of net cash, Agilon “can weather any storm,” says the firm, which sees the likelihood that 2025 is going to be a key inflection point for AEBITDA and cash.