COO
The Cooper Companies, Inc.
COO has a slight edge over UNH overall, supported by stronger valuation and stronger fundamentals.
UNH
UnitedHealth Group Incorporated
UNH offers stronger modeled upside, but that advantage does not outweigh its weaker overall profile.
COO Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Stable | |
| Healthy | |
| Strong | |
| Stable |
COO's profitability and cash flow are currently healthy, and its revenue and balance sheet are stable.
UNH Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Stable | |
| Stable | |
| Healthy | |
| Healthy |
UNH's cash flow and balance sheet are currently healthy, and its revenue and profitability are stable.
COO PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forward | 13x | $62.19 | — |
| Cheap | 17x | $50.37 | -19% |
| Current | 21x | $62.19 | — |
| Fair | 40x | $117 | +89% |
| Expensive | 61x | $179 | +189% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
COO's PE is in its cheap range at 21x. If earnings grow as analysts expect, today's price would be 13x next year's earnings.
UNH PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forward | 18x | $405 | — |
| Cheap | 19x | $325 | -20% |
| Fair | 23x | $410 | +1.2% |
| Current | 23x | $405 | — |
| Expensive | 30x | $526 | +30% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
UNH has the edge over COO in the historical PE scenario, which offers more potential upside but is not a forecast.
COO Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Strongly improving | |
| Growth | |
| Stable | |
| Improving | |
| Limited | |
| High |
Analysts expect COO's earnings to grow and its profitability to improve, with its revenue holding steady.
UNH Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Strongly improving | |
| Strong growth | |
| Stable | |
| Improving | |
| Moderate | |
| Low |
Analysts expect UNH's earnings to grow and its profitability to improve, with its revenue holding steady. However, they disagree widely on these estimates.
COO Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $4.64 | +59% |
| Q3 2026 | $2.92 | +43% |
| Q2 2026 | $1.17 | -43% |
| Q1 2026 | $2.01 | -2.9% |
| Q4 2025 | $1.87 | -4.6% |
| Q3 2025 | $2.04 | +14% |
| Q2 2025 | $2.07 | +22% |
| Q1 2025 | $2.07 | +42% |
| Q4 2024 | $1.96 | +32% |
COO has the edge over UNH on earnings, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
UNH Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $22.65 | +29% |
| Q3 2026 | $17.55 | -8.5% |
| Q2 2026 | $15.58 | -33% |
| Q1 2026 | $13.28 | -44% |
| Q4 2025 | $13.23 | -15% |
| Q3 2025 | $19.17 | +25% |
| Q2 2025 | $23.09 | +53% |
| Q1 2025 | $23.89 | +46% |
| Q4 2024 | $15.51 | -35% |
UNH's earnings per share have fallen from their peak: $17.55 over the past year, against $23.89 in early 2025.
COO Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $1.1B | +0.6% |
| Q2 2026 | $1.1B | +7.9% |
| Q1 2026 | $1B | +6.2% |
| Q4 2025 | $1.1B | +4.6% |
| Q3 2025 | $1.1B | +5.7% |
| Q2 2025 | $1B | +6.3% |
| Q1 2025 | $964.7M | +3.6% |
| Q4 2024 | $1B | +9.8% |
COO's revenue has grown year over year for 23 quarters in a row: $1.1B last quarter, about level with the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 21% | +4.3 points |
| Q2 2026 | -2.9% | -21 points |
| Q1 2026 | 21% | +1.9 points |
| Q4 2025 | 13% | -6.3 points |
| Q3 2025 | 17% | -2.6 points |
| Q2 2025 | 18% | +1.3 points |
| Q1 2025 | 19% | +2.4 points |
| Q4 2024 | 19% | +4.8 points |
COO has the edge over UNH on profitability, with a higher operating margin.
UNH Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $112.7B | -0.4% |
| Q2 2026 | $112B | +0.4% |
| Q1 2026 | $111.7B | +2% |
| Q4 2025 | $113.2B | +12% |
| Q3 2025 | $113.2B | +12% |
| Q2 2025 | $111.6B | +13% |
| Q1 2025 | $109.6B | +9.8% |
| Q4 2024 | $100.8B | +6.8% |
UNH's revenue has held roughly level: $113B last quarter, about level with the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 5.8% | +2 points |
| Q2 2026 | 7.1% | +2.5 points |
| Q1 2026 | 8.1% | -0.3 points |
| Q4 2025 | 0.3% | -7.4 points |
| Q3 2025 | 3.8% | -4.8 points |
| Q2 2025 | 4.6% | -3.4 points |
| Q1 2025 | 8.3% | +0.4 points |
| Q4 2024 | 7.7% | -0.4 points |
UNH's operating margin was 5.8% last quarter, up 2 points from the same quarter a year ago.
COO Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $273M | +66% |
| Q2 2026 | $96.4M | +433% |
| Q1 2026 | $158.7M | +57% |
| Q4 2025 | $149.9M | +17% |
| Q3 2025 | $164.5M | +39% |
| Q2 2025 | $18.1M | -51% |
| Q1 2025 | $101.2M | +2100% |
| Q4 2024 | $128.1M | +339% |
COO has the edge over UNH on cash flow, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
UNH Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $4.3B | -16% |
| Q2 2026 | $10.3B | +63% |
| Q1 2026 | $8.1B | +79% |
| Q4 2025 | $160M | -89% |
| Q3 2025 | $5.1B | -61% |
| Q2 2025 | $6.3B | +6.9% |
| Q1 2025 | $4.6B | +1037% |
| Q4 2024 | $1.5B | +$7.6B |
UNH still generates free cash flow, though less than at its 2022 peak: $22.8B over the past year.
COO Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | -0.8% | -1.6M shares |
| 1 year | -3.3% | -6.6M shares |
| 3 years | -3.1% | -6.2M shares |
| 5 years | -2.9% | -5.8M shares |
| Available history | -3.3% | -6.6M shares |
COO has the edge over UNH on shareholder dilution, with a more favorable share count trend.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $339.2M |
| Q2 2026 | $15.5M |
| Q1 2026 | $92.5M |
| Q4 2025 | $196.8M |
| Q3 2025 | $52.7M |
| Q4 2023 | — |
| Q3 2023 | — |
| Q2 2023 | — |
COO spent $644M buying back its own shares over the past year.
UNH Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | -0.4% | -4M shares |
| 1 year | -0.7% | -6M shares |
| 3 years | -3.6% | -34M shares |
| 5 years | -5.5% | -53M shares |
| Available history | -6.6% | -64M shares |
UNH has 902M diluted shares, down 0.7% from a year ago, with $5B in buybacks over the past year.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $3.4B |
| Q2 2026 | $1.6B |
| Q1 2026 | — |
| Q4 2025 | — |
| Q3 2025 | — |
| Q2 2025 | $2.5B |
| Q1 2025 | $3B |
| Q4 2024 | $5B |
UNH spent $5B buying back its own shares over the past year, down 52% from the year before.
COO Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 2.6x | Moderate |
| Q2 2026 | 2.6x | Moderate |
| Q1 2026 | 2.2x | Moderate |
| Q4 2025 | 2.3x | Moderate |
| Q3 2025 | 2.1x | Moderate |
| Q2 2025 | 2.2x | Moderate |
| Q1 2025 | 2.2x | Moderate |
| Q4 2024 | 2.3x | Moderate |
COO's net debt is about 2.6 years of its operating earnings (EBITDA), up from 2.1 years a year ago.
UNH Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 1.7x | Healthy |
| Q2 2026 | 1.7x | Healthy |
| Q1 2026 | 2.2x | Moderate |
| Q4 2025 | 2.3x | Moderate |
| Q3 2025 | 1.7x | Healthy |
| Q2 2025 | 1.5x | Healthy |
| Q1 2025 | 1.3x | Healthy |
| Q4 2024 | 1.4x | Healthy |
UNH has the edge over COO on leverage, with a lower net debt burden relative to earnings.
COO Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 46.3 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 38.2 | Neutral |
COO's weekly RSI is 46 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 38 (neutral).
UNH Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 56.4 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 60.0 | Neutral |
UNH's weekly RSI is 56 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 60 (neutral).
COO PE vs Healthcare Sector
| Metric | COO | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 21x | 26x | 18% below |
| PE % | 22 | 29 | 7 pts below |
COO has the edge over UNH on valuation relative to its sector.
UNH PE vs Healthcare Sector
| Metric | UNH | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 23x | 26x | 11% below |
| PE % | 47 | 29 | 18 pts above |
UNH is trading at 23x earnings, a 11% discount to the Healthcare sector's median of 26x.
COO Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $58.7 | 5.9% above |
| 20 week MA | $65.3 | 4.7% below |
| 50 week MA | $70.3 | 12% below |
| 100 week MA | $74.3 | 16% below |
| 200 week MA | $83.9 | 26% below |
COO has bounced recently, but its long-term trend is still down: it's above its 8-week average, but 26% below its 200-week average.
UNH Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $394.2 | 2.8% above |
| 20 week MA | $400.5 | 1.2% above |
| 50 week MA | $361.2 | 12% above |
| 100 week MA | $376.0 | 7.8% above |
| 200 week MA | $446.6 | 9.3% below |
UNH has the edge over COO on trend strength, trading above more of its moving averages.
COO Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $80.3 | $89.6 | +12% |
| 2021 | $89.6 | $102.8 | +15% |
| 2022 | $102.8 | $83.2 | -19% |
| 2023 | $83.2 | $94.6 | +14% |
| 2024 | $94.6 | $92.3 | -2.4% |
| 2025 | $92.3 | $82.6 | -11% |
| 2026 YTD | $82.6 | $62.2 | -25% |
COO has finished lower in three of the last six years. It's down 25% so far in 2026.
UNH Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $296.0 | $340.8 | +15% |
| 2021 | $340.8 | $495.4 | +45% |
| 2022 | $495.4 | $531.3 | +7.3% |
| 2023 | $531.3 | $526.5 | -0.9% |
| 2024 | $526.5 | $510.0 | -3.1% |
| 2025 | $510.0 | $331.8 | -35% |
| 2026 YTD | $331.8 | $405.1 | +22% |
UNH has the edge over COO on returns for 2026, with the stronger performance.