DHR
Danaher Corporation
DHR has the edge over UNH overall, supported by stronger fundamentals and lower modeled downside.
UNH
UnitedHealth Group Incorporated
UNH offers stronger modeled upside, but that advantage does not outweigh its weaker overall profile.
DHR Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Stable | |
| Strong | |
| Strong | |
| Stable |
DHR's profitability and cash flow are currently strong, 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.
DHR PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forward | 26x | $232 | — |
| Cheap | 29x | $180 | -22% |
| Current | 38x | $232 | — |
| Fair | 39x | $239 | +2.8% |
| Expensive | 45x | $276 | +19% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
DHR has the edge over UNH in the historical PE scenario, which offers more potential upside but is not a forecast.
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's PE is in its fair range at 23x. If earnings grow as analysts expect, today's price would be 18x next year's earnings, in its cheap range.
DHR Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Strongly improving | |
| Growth | |
| Growth | |
| Improving | |
| Moderate | |
| High |
DHR has the edge over UNH on the outlook, with more favorable revenue expectations.
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.
DHR Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $9.09 | +49% |
| Q3 2026 | $6.12 | +26% |
| Q2 2026 | $5.64 | +20% |
| Q1 2026 | $5.18 | +0.4% |
| Q4 2025 | $5.05 | -4.5% |
| Q3 2025 | $4.86 | -7.3% |
| Q2 2025 | $4.71 | -16% |
| Q1 2025 | $5.16 | -13% |
| Q4 2024 | $5.29 | -17% |
DHR has the edge over UNH on earnings, with stronger typical year-over-year growth.
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.
DHR Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $6.6B | +8.3% |
| Q2 2026 | $6.3B | +5.5% |
| Q1 2026 | $6B | +3.7% |
| Q4 2025 | $6.8B | +4.6% |
| Q3 2025 | $6.1B | +4.4% |
| Q2 2025 | $5.9B | +3.4% |
| Q1 2025 | $5.7B | -0.9% |
| Q4 2024 | $6.5B | +2.1% |
DHR's revenue is recovering but still below its 2022 peak: $6.6B last quarter, up 8.3% from the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 19% | -0.1 points |
| Q2 2026 | 18% | +5.2 points |
| Q1 2026 | 23% | +0.4 points |
| Q4 2025 | 22% | +0.2 points |
| Q3 2025 | 19% | +2.5 points |
| Q2 2025 | 13% | -7.5 points |
| Q1 2025 | 22% | -0.4 points |
| Q4 2024 | 22% | +0.9 points |
DHR 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 has the edge over DHR on sales, with stronger typical year-over-year growth.
| 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.
DHR Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $1.6B | +19% |
| Q2 2026 | $1.3B | +16% |
| Q1 2026 | $1.1B | +2.9% |
| Q4 2025 | $1.7B | +16% |
| Q3 2025 | $1.4B | +13% |
| Q2 2025 | $1.1B | -3.5% |
| Q1 2025 | $1.1B | -27% |
| Q4 2024 | $1.5B | +24% |
DHR 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.
DHR Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | -0.1% | -800K shares |
| 1 year | -1% | -6.9M shares |
| 3 years | -5.2% | -39.1M shares |
| 5 years | -2.8% | -20.2M shares |
| Available history | -2.6% | -18.7M shares |
DHR has the edge over UNH on shareholder dilution, with a more favorable share count trend.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | — |
| Q2 2026 | $894M |
| Q1 2026 | — |
| Q4 2025 | — |
| Q3 2025 | $2B |
| Q2 2025 | — |
| Q1 2025 | $1.1B |
| Q4 2024 | $809M |
DHR spent $894M buying back its own shares over the past year, down 77% from the year before.
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.
DHR Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 2.7x | Moderate |
| Q2 2026 | 2.9x | Moderate |
| Q1 2026 | 1.8x | Healthy |
| Q4 2025 | 1.9x | Healthy |
| Q3 2025 | 2.2x | Moderate |
| Q2 2025 | 2.1x | Moderate |
| Q1 2025 | 2.0x | Moderate |
| Q4 2024 | 1.9x | Healthy |
DHR's net debt is about 2.6 years of its operating earnings (EBITDA), up from 2.2 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 DHR on leverage, with a lower net debt burden relative to earnings.
DHR Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 62.3 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 84.4 | Overbought |
DHR's weekly RSI is 62 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 84 (overbought).
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).
DHR PE vs Healthcare Sector
| Metric | DHR | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 38x | 26x | 47% above |
| PE % | 42 | 29 | 13 pts above |
DHR is trading at 38x earnings, a 47% premium to the Healthcare sector's median of 26x.
UNH PE vs Healthcare Sector
| Metric | UNH | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 23x | 26x | 11% below |
| PE % | 47 | 29 | 18 pts above |
UNH has the edge over DHR on valuation relative to its sector.
DHR Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $226.6 | 2.5% above |
| 20 week MA | $213.1 | 9% above |
| 50 week MA | $205.7 | 13% above |
| 100 week MA | $206.5 | 12% above |
| 200 week MA | $221.0 | 5.1% above |
DHR has the edge over UNH on trend strength, trading above more of its moving averages.
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 bounced recently, but its long-term trend is still down: it's above its 8-, 20-, 50- and 100-week averages, but 9.3% below its 200-week average.
DHR Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $135.5 | $196.3 | +45% |
| 2021 | $196.3 | $284.4 | +45% |
| 2022 | $284.4 | $230.3 | -19% |
| 2023 | $230.3 | $231.3 | +0.4% |
| 2024 | $231.3 | $231.1 | -0.1% |
| 2025 | $231.1 | $230.3 | -0.3% |
| 2026 YTD | $230.3 | $232.2 | +0.8% |
DHR has finished lower in three of the last six years. It's up 0.8% 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 DHR on returns for 2026, with the stronger performance.