NHC
National HealthCare Corporation
NHC offers stronger fundamentals, but that advantage does not outweigh its weaker overall profile.
UNH
UnitedHealth Group Incorporated
UNH has the edge over NHC overall, supported by stronger modeled upside and stronger valuation.
NHC Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Stable | |
| Healthy | |
| Healthy | |
| Stable |
NHC'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.
NHC PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheap | 12x | $88.68 | -58% |
| Fair | 22x | $156 | -26% |
| Current | 29x | $211 | — |
| Expensive | 33x | $242 | +15% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
NHC's PE is in its expensive range at 29x.
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 NHC in the historical PE scenario, which offers more potential upside but is not a forecast.
NHC Forward outlook
There aren't enough analyst estimates for NHC to show an outlook.
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.
NHC Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $7.24 | +12% |
| Q2 2026 | $8.89 | +33% |
| Q1 2026 | $7.87 | +14% |
| Q4 2025 | $7.67 | +17% |
| Q3 2025 | $6.47 | -19% |
| Q2 2025 | $6.70 | +13% |
| Q1 2025 | $6.91 | +31% |
| Q4 2024 | $6.53 | +50% |
NHC 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.
NHC Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $408M | +6.6% |
| Q2 2026 | $408M | +8.8% |
| Q1 2026 | $381.8M | +2.2% |
| Q4 2025 | $386.5M | +4.6% |
| Q3 2025 | $382.7M | +12% |
| Q2 2025 | $374.9M | +25% |
| Q1 2025 | $373.7M | +26% |
| Q4 2024 | $369.4M | +23% |
NHC has the edge over UNH on sales, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 10% | +2 points |
| Q2 2026 | 12% | +2.9 points |
| Q1 2026 | 8.4% | +0.2 points |
| Q4 2025 | 8.6% | +1.4 points |
| Q3 2025 | 7.9% | +1.8 points |
| Q2 2025 | 9.1% | +1.6 points |
| Q1 2025 | 8.2% | +3 points |
| Q4 2024 | 7.2% | +0.5 points |
NHC 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.
NHC Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $99.2M | +76% |
| Q2 2026 | $30.7M | -42% |
| Q1 2026 | $52.9M | +60% |
| Q4 2025 | $6.4M | +38% |
| Q3 2025 | $56.5M | +98% |
| Q2 2025 | $52.6M | +23% |
| Q1 2025 | $33.1M | +797% |
| Q4 2024 | $4.6M | -73% |
NHC 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.
NHC Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | +0.6% | +101K shares |
| 1 year | +1.9% | +300K shares |
| 3 years | +4.2% | +640K shares |
| 5 years | +3.9% | +601K shares |
| Available history | +3.9% | +605K shares |
NHC has 16M diluted shares, up 1.9% from a year ago.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $1.1M |
| Q2 2026 | $7.2M |
| Q1 2026 | $16.3M |
| Q4 2025 | $5.2M |
| Q3 2025 | $3.2M |
| Q2 2025 | $4.7M |
| Q1 2025 | $1.7M |
| Q4 2024 | — |
NHC spent $30M buying back its own shares over the past year, about three times what it spent 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 the edge over NHC on shareholder dilution, with a more favorable share count trend.
| 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.
NHC Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 2.1x | Moderate |
| Q2 2026 | -0.2x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2026 | -0.5x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2025 | -0.3x | Net Cash |
| Q3 2025 | -0.4x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2025 | -0.0x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2025 | 0.3x | Very low |
| Q4 2024 | 0.5x | Very low |
NHC's net debt is about 2.1 years of its operating earnings (EBITDA), after holding more cash than debt 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 NHC on leverage, with a lower net debt burden relative to earnings.
NHC Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 50.0 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 15.5 | Oversold |
NHC's weekly RSI is 50 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 15 (oversold).
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).
NHC PE vs Healthcare Sector
| Metric | NHC | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 29x | 26x | 13% above |
| PE % | 73 | 29 | 44 pts above |
NHC is trading at 29x earnings, a 13% 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 NHC on valuation relative to its sector.
NHC Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $223.3 | 5.6% below |
| 20 week MA | $222.8 | 5.4% below |
| 50 week MA | $188.1 | 12% above |
| 100 week MA | $147.3 | 43% above |
| 200 week MA | $117.5 | 79% above |
NHC has pulled back, but its long-term trend is still up: it's below its 8- and 20-week averages, but 79% above 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 NHC on trend strength, trading above more of its moving averages.
NHC Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $85.0 | $66.3 | -22% |
| 2021 | $66.3 | $67.7 | +2.2% |
| 2022 | $67.7 | $61.8 | -8.8% |
| 2023 | $61.8 | $92.4 | +50% |
| 2024 | $92.4 | $109.6 | +19% |
| 2025 | $109.6 | $138.7 | +27% |
| 2026 YTD | $138.7 | $210.8 | +52% |
NHC has the edge over UNH on returns for 2026, with the stronger performance.
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 finished three years in a row lower, and it's up 22% so far in 2026.