UnitedHealth Group's (NYSE: UNH) stock price surged close to its all-time high to touch the $620 mark at 9:30 a.m. ET on December 4. That was right around when Group CEO Andrew Witty called off the company's Investor Conference at the Hilton Hotel in midtown Manhattan yesterday after Brian Thompson, CEO of the Group's insurance unit UnitedHealthcare, was fatally shot in front of the hotel.
Thompson, who served UnitedHealthcare for two decades and was appointed CEO in April 2021, was set to speak at the event. The suspect was described as a white male in black attire using a firearm with a silencer to fatally injure Thompson in a targeted attack, as reported by CNBC. Despite immediate medical assistance, the 50-year-old Minnesota resident succumbed to his gunshot injuries at the nearby Mount Sinai West Hospital. UNH stock price retreated to $608 (£477.96) yesterday but increased again to over $610 (£479.54) on December 5. The stock price has surged over 16% year-to-date (YTD).
Business Outlook Boost For 2025
Earlier this week, UNH upgraded its 2025 business forecast for net earnings and operational cashflows of up to $28.65 (£22.54) and $33 billion (£25.95 billion), respectively, on revenue estimates of up to $455 billion (£357.92 billion), higher than the previously estimated $431 billion (£338.45 billion). UNH is an incumbent in the space with a market cap of $563 billion (£442.88 billion). Furthermore, the Thompson-led unit generated two-thirds of the Group's total 2023 revenues at $281 billion (£221.05 billion). UnitedHealthcare offers health coverage to almost 50 million Americans and is the top Medicare Advantage plan provider. The Advantage plans are a privately run version of the US Medicare program for people aged 65 and above. It also offers individual insurance and health coverage for countless employers nationwide.
UNH Q3 Revenues Jump $8.5 Billion YoY On Million Of Consumer Additions
In Q3, UNH's revenues increased by $8.5 billion (£6.68 billion) year-over-year (YoY) to $100.8 billion (£79.25 billion) as the company added millions of consumers across its UnitedHealthcare and Optum business segments. "Our continued growth, which positions us well for the coming years, is rooted in the innovative products and responsive service of our people that are embraced each day across the full range of healthcare participants," said Witty in the earnings release.
UnitedHealthcare's Q3 revenues increased $5 billion (£3.93 billion) YoY to $74.9 billion (£51.02 billion) as the number of people using the unit's commercial offerings surged by 2.4 million YTD to 29.7 million. Meanwhile, UNH's Optum segment, which leverages analytics and data to deliver care services in the global healthcare marketplace for employers, consumers, and governments, witnessed quarterly revenue growth of $7.2 billion (£5.66 billion) YoY to $63.9 billion (£50.24 billion), driven by Optum Health and Optum Rx revenues, which grew $2.1 billion (£1.65 billion) and $5.4 billion (£4.24 billion), respectively, on an expanded customer base. Despite the shocking development in the company around Thompson's death, the upward momentum could be attributed to the robust balance sheet, rapid customer additions, offering expansion, and a healthy cash flow. Although the stock remains costly compared to its peers, as evidenced by the price-to-earnings ratio of 39.80 on December 4, trading volumes have surged to over 4 million, much higher than the average of 3.23 million.
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