UnitedHealth Group (UNH) Dips More Than Broader Markets: What You Should Know
In the latest trading session, UnitedHealth Group (UNH) closed at $536.91, marking a -1.98% move from the previous day. This change lagged the S&P 500's 0.09% loss on the day. At the same time, the Dow lost 0.56%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq gained 0.22%.
Prior to today's trading, shares of the largest U.S. health insurer had gained 0.8% over the past month. This has lagged the Medical sector's gain of 5.18% and the S&P 500's gain of 5.55% in that time.
Investors will be hoping for strength from UnitedHealth Group as it approaches its next earnings release. On that day, UnitedHealth Group is projected to report earnings of $5.16 per share, which would represent year-over-year growth of 15.18%. Our most recent consensus estimate is calling for quarterly revenue of $81.82 billion, up 10.96% from the year-ago period.
Looking at the full year, our Zacks Consensus Estimates suggest analysts are expecting earnings of $22.01 per share and revenue of $323.21 billion. These totals would mark changes of +15.72% and +12.38%, respectively, from last year.
Investors might also notice recent changes to analyst estimates for UnitedHealth Group. Recent revisions tend to reflect the latest near-term business trends. As a result, we can interpret positive estimate revisions as a good sign for the company's business outlook.
Our research shows that these estimate changes are directly correlated with near-term stock prices. Investors can capitalize on this by using the Zacks Rank. This model considers these estimate changes and provides a simple, actionable rating system.
The Zacks Rank system ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell). It has a remarkable, outside-audited track record of success, with #1 stocks delivering an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Within the past 30 days, our consensus EPS projection has moved 0.05% higher. UnitedHealth Group is currently a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
Investors should also note UnitedHealth Group's current valuation metrics, including its Forward P/E ratio of 24.89. This valuation marks a premium compared to its industry's average Forward P/E of 18.95.
Also, we should mention that UNH has a PEG ratio of 1.7. This popular metric is similar to the widely-known P/E ratio, with the difference being that the PEG ratio also takes into account the company's expected earnings growth rate. UNH's industry had an average PEG ratio of 1.22 as of yesterday's close.
The Medical - HMOs industry is part of the Medical sector. This group has a Zacks Industry Rank of 189, putting it in the bottom 25% of all 250+ industries.
The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our industry groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.
You can find more information on all of these metrics, and much more, on Zacks.com.
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UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (UNH) : Free Stock Analysis Report
