Feb 4 (Reuters) - Centene ( CNC ) beat Wall Street

estimates for fourth-quarter profit on Tuesday, helped by

strength in its commercial health insurance plans.

The company mostly focuses on government-backed Medicaid

plans for low-income people, as well as income-based

government-subsidized health insurance under the Affordable Care

Act, also known as Obamacare.

It has relied on growth in its private plans for individuals

and families as it struggles with a drop in members in its

government-backed Medicaid plans for lower-income groups, and a

rise in costs related to those plans after the end of a

pandemic-era federal policy.

For the quarter, Centene ( CNC ) reported a medical loss ratio - the

percentage of premiums spent on medical care - of 89.6%,

compared with 89.5% a year ago. Analysts on average had

estimated a ratio of 89.95%, according to data compiled by LSEG.

On an adjusted basis, the health insurer reported a profit

of 80 cents per share, above analysts' average estimate of 49

cents.

(Reporting by Sriparna Roy and Sneha S K in Bengaluru; Editing

by Shinjini Ganguli)