Leuthold Group LLC Makes New Investment in Molina Healthcare, Inc $MOH

Key Points

• Leuthold Group LLC opened a new position in Molina Healthcare during the fourth quarter, buying 20,027 shares valued at about $3.48 million.
• Institutional ownership remains extremely high, with hedge funds and other institutions holding 98.5% of Molina’s stock. Several large investors also increased their stakes significantly in recent quarters.
• Analysts remain cautious overall: the stock has a Hold consensus rating with an average price target of $174.53, even though Bank of America recently upgraded it to Buy.

Leuthold Group LLC acquired a new position in Molina Healthcare, Inc (NYSE:MOH - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 20,027 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,475,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Molina Healthcare by 217.0% in the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,934,130 shares of the company's stock worth $561,475,000 after purchasing an additional 2,008,458 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in Molina Healthcare by 344.3% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 963,526 shares of the company's stock worth $184,380,000 after purchasing an additional 746,639 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in Molina Healthcare by 31.0% in the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 938,677 shares of the company's stock worth $179,632,000 after purchasing an additional 222,346 shares during the period. UBS Group AG grew its holdings in Molina Healthcare by 320.7% in the third quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 603,934 shares of the company's stock worth $115,569,000 after purchasing an additional 460,372 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in Molina Healthcare by 4.9% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 569,023 shares of the company's stock worth $108,888,000 after purchasing an additional 26,355 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.50% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a "hold" rating and issued a $129.00 price objective on shares of Molina Healthcare in a report on Friday, April 24th. Bank of America upgraded shares of Molina Healthcare from an "underperform" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $250.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Molina Healthcare in a research note on Friday, March 13th. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of Molina Healthcare from $124.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Molina Healthcare from $128.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $174.53.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Jeff D. Barlow sold 17,811 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $186.12, for a total transaction of $3,314,983.32. Following the transaction, the insider owned 67,175 shares in the company, valued at $12,502,611. This represents a 20.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO Maurice Hebert sold 600 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $191.55, for a total transaction of $114,930.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 12,815 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,454,713.25. This trade represents a 4.47% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 1.44% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Molina Healthcare Price Performance

NYSE MOH opened at $184.78 on Friday. Molina Healthcare, Inc has a one year low of $121.06 and a one year high of $327.68. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $156.96 and a 200 day moving average of $158.90. The company has a market capitalization of $9.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.67 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a current ratio of 1.63.

Molina Healthcare (NYSE:MOH - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The company reported $2.35 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.57 by $0.78. The company had revenue of $10.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.91 billion. Molina Healthcare had a net margin of 0.42% and a return on equity of 8.76%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $6.08 earnings per share. Molina Healthcare has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.000- EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Molina Healthcare, Inc will post 5.23 EPS for the current year.

Molina Healthcare Company Profile

Molina Healthcare, Inc is a managed care company specializing in government-sponsored health insurance programs. The company offers Medicaid managed care plans, Medicare Advantage and prescription drug plans, and individual Marketplace plans under the Affordable Care Act. Through an integrated care model, Molina emphasizes preventive and primary care services, care coordination, and disease management to improve health outcomes for its members.

The company traces its roots to the early 1980s, when Dr.

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