Molina Healthcare (NYSE:MOH) Raised to “Buy” at StockNews.com

Molina Healthcare (NYSE:MOH) was upgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on MOH. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Molina Healthcare from $372.00 to $339.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 7th. Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $345.00 price target on shares of Molina Healthcare in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Truist Financial cut their price objective on Molina Healthcare from $370.00 to $340.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Mizuho lowered their target price on Molina Healthcare from $382.00 to $376.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Molina Healthcare from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $295.00 to $372.00 in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $355.69.

Molina Healthcare Price Performance

MOH opened at $323.85 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $17.71 billion, a PE ratio of 15.85, a P/E/G ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 0.56. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $302.25 and a 200-day moving average price of $309.17. Molina Healthcare has a 1 year low of $262.32 and a 1 year high of $416.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.62 and a quick ratio of 1.62.

Molina Healthcare (NYSE:MOH) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $5.05 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.74 by ($0.69). Molina Healthcare had a net margin of 2.90% and a return on equity of 28.13%. Sell-side analysts predict that Molina Healthcare will post 24.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Molina Healthcare

In other Molina Healthcare news, Director Steven J. Orlando sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $301.33, for a total transaction of $301,330.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 17,375 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,235,608.75. This trade represents a 5.44 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Molina Healthcare

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Molina Healthcare during the fourth quarter worth $134,675,000. FMR LLC grew its stake in Molina Healthcare by 31.1% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,801,113 shares of the company’s stock worth $524,214,000 after buying an additional 427,276 shares during the last quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC increased its position in Molina Healthcare by 1,641.3% during the 4th quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 409,807 shares of the company’s stock valued at $119,274,000 after buying an additional 386,273 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in Molina Healthcare by 28.5% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,327,021 shares of the company’s stock valued at $386,229,000 after buying an additional 294,180 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in Molina Healthcare by 7.4% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,632,232 shares of the company’s stock worth $766,111,000 after acquiring an additional 181,073 shares in the last quarter. 98.50% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Molina Healthcare Company Profile

Molina Healthcare, Inc provides managed healthcare services to low-income families and individuals under the Medicaid and Medicare programs and through the state insurance marketplaces. It operates in four segments: Medicaid, Medicare, Marketplace, and Other. The company served in across 19 states. The company was founded in 1980 and is headquartered in Long Beach, California.