UNH
UnitedHealth Group Incorporated
UNH offers stronger modeled upside, but that advantage does not outweigh its weaker overall profile.
WST
West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc.
WST has the edge over UNH overall, supported by stronger fundamentals and lower modeled downside.
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.
WST Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Healthy | |
| Strong | |
| Strong | |
| Strong |
WST's revenue, profitability, cash flow and balance sheet are all currently healthy.
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.
WST PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheap | 35x | $314 | -24% |
| Forward | 41x | $411 | — |
| Current | 46x | $411 | — |
| Fair | 47x | $417 | +1.3% |
| Expensive | 61x | $544 | +32% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
WST has the edge over UNH in the historical PE scenario, which offers more potential upside but is not a forecast.
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.
WST Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Improving | |
| Strong growth | |
| Growth | |
| Strongly improving | |
| Limited | |
| High |
WST has the edge over UNH on the outlook, with more favorable revenue expectations.
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.
WST Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $10.04 | +13% |
| Q3 2026 | $8.91 | +32% |
| Q2 2026 | $7.81 | +17% |
| Q1 2026 | $7.48 | +17% |
| Q4 2025 | $6.79 | +1.5% |
| Q3 2025 | $6.75 | +0.1% |
| Q2 2025 | $6.68 | -5% |
| Q1 2025 | $6.37 | -16% |
| Q4 2024 | $6.69 | -15% |
WST has the edge over UNH on earnings, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
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.
WST Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $874.5M | +8.7% |
| Q2 2026 | $872.3M | +14% |
| Q1 2026 | $844.9M | +21% |
| Q4 2025 | $805M | +7.5% |
| Q3 2025 | $804.6M | +7.7% |
| Q2 2025 | $766.5M | +9.2% |
| Q1 2025 | $698M | +0.4% |
| Q4 2024 | $748.8M | +2.3% |
WST's revenue has grown year over year for eight quarters in a row: $875M last quarter, up 8.7% from the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 31% | +9.8 points |
| Q2 2026 | 21% | +0.5 points |
| Q1 2026 | 21% | +5.6 points |
| Q4 2025 | 19% | -1.9 points |
| Q3 2025 | 21% | -0.8 points |
| Q2 2025 | 20% | +2.1 points |
| Q1 2025 | 15% | -2.3 points |
| Q4 2024 | 21% | -0.7 points |
WST has the edge over UNH on profitability, with a higher operating margin.
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.
WST Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $150.4M | +12% |
| Q2 2026 | $80.8M | -21% |
| Q1 2026 | $47.2M | -19% |
| Q4 2025 | $175M | +105% |
| Q3 2025 | $133.9M | +36% |
| Q2 2025 | $101.9M | +57% |
| Q1 2025 | $58.1M | +111% |
| Q4 2024 | $85.2M | -35% |
WST's free cash flow has been positive every quarter for seven years: $453M over the past year, up 20% 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.
WST Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | -0.7% | -500K shares |
| 1 year | -2.5% | -1.8M shares |
| 3 years | -6% | -4.5M shares |
| 5 years | -6.8% | -5.2M shares |
| Available history | -6.1% | -4.6M shares |
WST has the edge over UNH on shareholder dilution, with a more favorable share count trend.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $231M |
| Q2 2026 | $156.7M |
| Q1 2026 | $297.6M |
| Q4 2025 | — |
| Q3 2025 | — |
| Q2 2025 | $500,000 |
| Q1 2025 | $133.5M |
| Q4 2024 | $54.4M |
WST spent $685M buying back its own shares over the past year, about four times what it spent the year before.
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's net debt is about 1.7 years of its operating earnings (EBITDA), about the same as a year ago.
WST Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | -0.3x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2026 | -0.3x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2026 | -0.4x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2025 | -0.8x | Net Cash |
| Q3 2025 | -0.6x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2025 | -0.4x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2025 | -0.3x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2024 | -0.4x | Net Cash |
WST has the edge over UNH on leverage, with a lower net debt burden relative to earnings.
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).
WST Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 69.6 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 71.9 | Neutral |
WST's weekly RSI is 70 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 72 (neutral).
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 WST on valuation relative to its sector.
WST PE vs Healthcare Sector
| Metric | WST | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 46x | 26x | 79% above |
| PE % | 47 | 29 | 18 pts above |
WST is trading at 46x earnings, a 79% premium to the Healthcare sector's median of 26x.
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.
WST Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $387.7 | 6.1% above |
| 20 week MA | $364.5 | 13% above |
| 50 week MA | $312.1 | 32% above |
| 100 week MA | $282.5 | 46% above |
| 200 week MA | $313.1 | 31% above |
WST has the edge over UNH on trend strength, trading above more of its moving averages.
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.
WST Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $150.8 | $283.0 | +88% |
| 2021 | $283.0 | $459.8 | +63% |
| 2022 | $459.8 | $235.1 | -49% |
| 2023 | $235.1 | $352.1 | +50% |
| 2024 | $352.1 | $333.2 | -5.4% |
| 2025 | $333.2 | $274.3 | -18% |
| 2026 YTD | $274.3 | $411.3 | +50% |
WST has the edge over UNH on returns for 2026, with the stronger performance.