Wells Fargo & Company Has Lowered Expectations for Molina Healthcare (NYSE:MOH) Stock Price

Key Points

• Wells Fargo & Company has reduced its price target for Molina Healthcare from $216.00 to $198.00, indicating a potential upside of 23.98% from the stock's previous close.
• Despite the price target cuts from multiple analysts, Molina Healthcare has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $242.91.
• COO James Woys purchased 10,000 shares of Molina Healthcare at an average price of $155.94, increasing his position in the company by 15.54%.

Molina Healthcare (NYSE:MOH - Free Report) had its price objective lowered by Wells Fargo & Company from $216.00 to $198.00 in a research report released on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an overweight rating on the stock.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Morgan Stanley cut Molina Healthcare from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $364.00 to $266.00 in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Wall Street Zen cut Molina Healthcare from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, June 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Molina Healthcare from $272.00 to $184.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 29th. Mizuho decreased their target price on Molina Healthcare from $400.00 to $330.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on Molina Healthcare in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They set an "outperform" rating and a $414.00 target price for the company. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $242.91.

Molina Healthcare Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MOH traded up $4.49 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $173.64. The stock had a trading volume of 1,753,146 shares, compared to its average volume of 983,906. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $220.74 and a 200-day simple moving average of $280.58. The company has a market capitalization of $9.41 billion, a PE ratio of 8.56 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a quick ratio of 1.66, a current ratio of 1.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. Molina Healthcare has a 1 year low of $151.95 and a 1 year high of $365.23.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Molina Healthcare news, COO James Woys acquired 10,000 shares of Molina Healthcare stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 4th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $155.94 per share, for a total transaction of $1,559,400.00. Following the purchase, the chief operating officer owned 74,331 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,591,176.14. This represents a 15.54% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Ronna Romney sold 700 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.74, for a total transaction of $107,618.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 17,131 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,633,719.94. This trade represents a 3.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.26% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Molina Healthcare

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of MOH. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its position in Molina Healthcare by 46.4% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 3,838,043 shares of the company's stock worth $1,264,214,000 after acquiring an additional 1,216,903 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Molina Healthcare in the 2nd quarter valued at $212,113,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of Molina Healthcare by 74,593.7% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 667,015 shares of the company's stock worth $219,708,000 after purchasing an additional 666,122 shares in the last quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Molina Healthcare by 1,641.3% in the 4th quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 409,807 shares of the company's stock worth $119,274,000 after buying an additional 386,273 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in Molina Healthcare by 25.9% in the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,601,574 shares of the company's stock valued at $477,109,000 after purchasing an additional 329,759 shares during the last quarter. 98.50% of the stock is currently owned by 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.