Why UnitedHealth Group (UNH) Outpaced the Stock Market Today

UnitedHealth Group (UNH) closed the most recent trading day at $336.40, moving +1.91% from the previous trading session. This move outpaced the S&P 500's daily gain of 0.19%. Meanwhile, the Dow gained 0.66%, and the Nasdaq, a tech-heavy index, lost 0.03%. The largest U.S. health insurer's shares have seen a decrease of 1.01% over the last month, not keeping up with the Medical sector's gain of 0.17% and the S&P 500's gain of 0.54%.Market participants will be closely following the financial results of UnitedHealth Group in its upcoming release. The company plans to announce its earnings on January 27, 2026. The company is predicted to post an EPS of $2.09, indicating a 69.31% decline compared to the equivalent quarter last year. Alongside, our most recent consensus estimate is anticipating revenue of $113.64 billion, indicating a 12.73% upward movement from the same quarter last year. For the full year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates project earnings of $16.3 per share and a revenue of $448.03 billion, demonstrating changes of -41.07% and 0%, respectively, from the preceding year. Investors should also note any recent changes to analyst estimates for UnitedHealth Group. These revisions typically reflect the latest short-term business trends, which can change frequently. Consequently, upward revisions in estimates express analysts' positivity towards the business operations and its ability to generate profits. Based on our research, we believe these estimate revisions are directly related to near-term stock moves. To utilize this, we have created the Zacks Rank, a proprietary model that integrates these estimate changes and provides a functional rating system. The Zacks Rank system, which varies between #1 (Strong Buy) and #5 (Strong Sell), carries an impressive track record of exceeding expectations, confirmed by external audits, with stocks at #1 delivering an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Over the past month, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has remained steady. UnitedHealth Group currently has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold). In the context of valuation, UnitedHealth Group is at present trading with a Forward P/E ratio of 18.75. This denotes a premium relative to the industry average Forward P/E of 14.01. It is also worth noting that UNH currently has a PEG ratio of 1.99. This metric is used similarly to the famous P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also takes into account the stock's expected earnings growth rate. UNH's industry had an average PEG ratio of 0.97 as of yesterday's close. The Medical - HMOs industry is part of the Medical sector. At present, this industry carries a Zacks Industry Rank of 234, placing it within the bottom 5% of over 250 industries. The Zacks Industry Rank assesses the vigor of our specific industry groups by computing the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks incorporated in 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. Research Chief Names "Single Best Pick to Double"From thousands of stocks, 5 Zacks experts each have chosen their favorite to skyrocket +100% or more in months to come. From those 5, Director of Research Sheraz Mian hand-picks one to have the most explosive upside of all.This company targets millennial and Gen Z audiences, generating nearly $1 billion in revenue last quarter alone. A recent pullback makes now an ideal time to jump aboard. Of course, all our elite picks aren’t winners but this one could far surpass earlier Zacks’ Stocks Set to Double like Nano-X Imaging which shot up +129.6% in little more than 9 months.Free: See Our Top Stock And 4 Runners UpWant the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (UNH): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).Zacks Investment ResearchWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks