Molina Healthcare (NYSE:MOH) Hits New 52-Week High Following Analyst Upgrade

Molina Healthcare, Inc (NYSE:MOH)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high on Tuesday after Truist Financial raised their price target on the stock from $205.00 to $250.00. Truist Financial currently has a hold rating on the stock. Molina Healthcare traded as high as $243.77 and last traded at $243.34, with a volume of 981195 shares. The stock had previously closed at $233.31.

Several other brokerages have also commented on MOH. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Molina Healthcare from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 25th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Molina Healthcare from $180.00 to $202.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their price target on shares of Molina Healthcare from $144.00 to $209.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Molina Healthcare from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 2nd. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein set a $286.00 price objective on Molina Healthcare in a research note on Monday. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $207.06.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Maurice Hebert sold 600 shares of Molina Healthcare stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $191.55, for a total value of $114,930.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 12,815 shares in the company, valued at $2,454,713.25. This trade represents a 4.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Jeff D. Barlow sold 17,811 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $186.12, for a total transaction of $3,314,983.32. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 67,175 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,502,611. This trade represents a 20.96% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 1.44% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Molina Healthcare

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in MOH. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Molina Healthcare by 217.0% during the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,934,130 shares of the company’s stock valued at $561,475,000 after purchasing an additional 2,008,458 shares during the period. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Molina Healthcare by 10.2% in the 4th quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,171,433 shares of the company’s stock worth $376,831,000 after purchasing an additional 201,772 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in Molina Healthcare by 24.2% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,690,981 shares of the company’s stock valued at $293,453,000 after buying an additional 329,679 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in Molina Healthcare by 46.4% during the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,410,604 shares of the company’s stock valued at $244,796,000 after buying an additional 447,078 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Molina Healthcare by 23.7% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,394,882 shares of the company’s stock valued at $185,929,000 after buying an additional 267,121 shares during the period. 98.50% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Molina Healthcare Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $12.16 billion, a PE ratio of 69.07 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.63 and a quick ratio of 1.63. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $201.97 and its 200-day moving average price is $174.74.

Molina Healthcare (NYSE:MOH) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The company reported $2.35 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.57 by $0.78. The company had revenue of $10.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.91 billion. Molina Healthcare had a net margin of 0.42% and a return on equity of 8.76%. Molina Healthcare’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $6.08 earnings per share. Molina Healthcare has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.000- EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Molina Healthcare, Inc will post 5.23 EPS for the current year.

Molina Healthcare Company Profile

Molina Healthcare, Inc is a managed care company specializing in government-sponsored health insurance programs. The company offers Medicaid managed care plans, Medicare Advantage and prescription drug plans, and individual Marketplace plans under the Affordable Care Act. Through an integrated care model, Molina emphasizes preventive and primary care services, care coordination, and disease management to improve health outcomes for its members.

The company traces its roots to the early 1980s, when Dr.