Molina Healthcare (NYSE:MOH) Receives "Sell (D+)" Rating from Weiss Ratings

Key Points

• Molina Healthcare's stock has been given a "Sell (D+)" rating by Weiss Ratings, reflecting concerns about the company's future performance.
• Analysts have lowered their price targets significantly, with estimates ranging from $179.00 to $330.00, and the overall consensus target price is set at $228.18.
• The company reported a quarterly EPS of $5.48, slightly below the consensus estimate, while revenue increased by 15.7% compared to the previous year.

Molina Healthcare (NYSE:MOH - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "sell (d+)" rating restated by equities researchers at Weiss Ratings in a research note issued on Wednesday,Weiss Ratings reports.

A number of other equities analysts have also commented on MOH. Sanford C. Bernstein dropped their price objective on Molina Healthcare from $284.00 to $220.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, September 5th. Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on Molina Healthcare from $373.00 to $179.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Molina Healthcare from $272.00 to $184.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 29th. Mizuho dropped their price objective on Molina Healthcare from $400.00 to $330.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price objective on Molina Healthcare from $186.00 to $185.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, September 4th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $228.18.

Molina Healthcare Stock Performance

MOH opened at $202.97 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $11.00 billion, a PE ratio of 10.00 and a beta of 0.55. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $176.65 and a 200-day moving average of $250.92. Molina Healthcare has a 52-week low of $151.95 and a 52-week high of $359.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a current ratio of 1.66.

Molina Healthcare (NYSE:MOH - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results 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). The company had revenue of $11.43 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.94 billion. Molina Healthcare had a return on equity of 27.72% and a net margin of 2.60%.The business's revenue was up 15.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $5.86 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Molina Healthcare will post 24.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Molina Healthcare

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Molina Healthcare

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Czech National Bank grew its position in Molina Healthcare by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 13,766 shares of the company's stock worth $2,634,000 after acquiring an additional 518 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in Molina Healthcare by 1,015.4% during the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 79,493 shares of the company's stock worth $15,212,000 after acquiring an additional 72,366 shares during the last quarter. Sanders Morris Harris LLC bought a new stake in Molina Healthcare during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $474,000. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Molina Healthcare during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,090,000. Finally, Praxis Investment Management Inc. grew its position in Molina Healthcare by 44.4% during the 3rd quarter. Praxis Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,155 shares of the company's stock worth $221,000 after acquiring an additional 355 shares during the last quarter. 98.50% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Molina Healthcare

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.

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