LPL Financial LLC Acquires 12,503 Shares of Molina Healthcare, Inc (NYSE:MOH)

Key Points

• LPL Financial LLC increased its stake in Molina Healthcare by 69.6% in the first quarter, acquiring an additional 12,503 shares, bringing its total to 30,463 shares valued at approximately $10 million.
• Multiple hedge funds, including Cerity Partners LLC and Capital Fund Management S.A., significantly boosted their holdings in Molina Healthcare, with 98.50% of the stock currently owned by institutional investors.
• Analysts have reduced their price targets for Molina Healthcare, with JPMorgan lowering its target from $272 to $184, reflecting a cautious outlook on the stock amidst a consensus rating of "Hold."

LPL Financial LLC raised its stake in Molina Healthcare, Inc (NYSE:MOH - Free Report) by 69.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 30,463 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 12,503 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC owned about 0.06% of Molina Healthcare worth $10,034,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Rothschild Investment LLC grew its holdings in shares of Molina Healthcare by 126.3% during the 1st quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 86 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC grew its holdings in shares of Molina Healthcare by 930.0% during the 4th quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 103 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares during the last quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators grew its holdings in shares of Molina Healthcare by 60.7% during the 1st quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 90 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated bought a new position in shares of Molina Healthcare during the 1st quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Allworth Financial LP grew its holdings in shares of Molina Healthcare by 52.0% during the 1st quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 228 shares of the company's stock valued at $72,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 98.50% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Ronna Romney sold 700 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.74, for a total transaction of $107,618.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 17,131 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,633,719.94. The trade was a 3.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, COO James Woys bought 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 4th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $155.94 per share, with a total value of $1,559,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 74,331 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,591,176.14. This trade represents a 15.54% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Molina Healthcare Stock Down 1.9%

Molina Healthcare stock traded down $3.06 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $153.84. The stock had a trading volume of 1,064,529 shares, compared to its average volume of 962,512. The company has a quick ratio of 1.66, a current ratio of 1.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.58 and a beta of 0.52. Molina Healthcare, Inc has a 12-month low of $151.95 and a 12-month high of $365.23. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $236.76 and its 200-day moving average price is $286.75.

Molina Healthcare (NYSE:MOH - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The company reported $5.48 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $5.50 by ($0.02). Molina Healthcare had a return on equity of 27.72% and a net margin of 2.60%. The company had revenue of $11.43 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.94 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $5.86 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 15.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Molina Healthcare, Inc will post 24.4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on MOH. Mizuho reduced their target price on shares of Molina Healthcare from $400.00 to $330.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 11th. Baird R W lowered shares of Molina Healthcare from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on shares of Molina Healthcare from $373.00 to $179.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 25th. Truist Financial reissued a "hold" rating and issued a $180.00 price target (down previously from $335.00) on shares of Molina Healthcare in a report on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Molina Healthcare from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, June 29th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $244.55.

Molina Healthcare 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.