(Reuters] – UnitedHealth Group Inc. (NYSE:), Thursday announced better-than expected quarterly earnings. The company was helped by a surge in Optum revenue. It raised its profit forecasts for the year.

Optum, which provides healthcare data analysis services and manages drugs benefits, was able to withstand the fluctuating costs of medical care during the Pandemic that hit the company’s insurance business.

Optum revenue increased 18.9%, to $43.26billion during the quarter ending March 31. Meanwhile, the revenues from the health insurance company grew by 13.6% to $62.6billion.

A COVID-19 effect led to the increase in medical care rates at America’s largest health insurance. They rose from 80.9% to 82% during the previous quarter. Refers to how much premiums are spent on medical services.

According to Refinitiv IBES data, however, this number is still lower than analysts’ expectations of 82.29%.

UnitedHealth reported that they now anticipate an adjusted profit of between $11.20 and $21.70 per shares in 2022, up from their prior forecasts of $21.10- $21.60.

The adjusted earnings of the company beat estimates by $5.38 per shares.

In premarket trading, UnitedHealth’s shares rose 0.5% to $539.80