Molina Healthcare (NYSE:MOH) Shares Gap Up - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• Molina Healthcare's stock price experienced a significant increase, opening at $194.61 compared to the previous close of $179.15, with shares last trading at $189.47.
• Various analysts have lowered their price targets for Molina Healthcare, with Robert W. Baird adjusting their target from $373 to $179, while the consensus rating remains at "Hold" with an average target of $225.18.
• COO James Woys purchased 10,000 shares at an average cost of $155.94, representing a 15.54% increase in his ownership, while another director sold 700 shares at $153.74.

Molina Healthcare, Inc (NYSE:MOH - Get Free Report)'s share price gapped up before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $179.15, but opened at $194.61. Molina Healthcare shares last traded at $189.47, with a volume of 275,793 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on MOH. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Molina Healthcare from $260.00 to $180.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased 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 shares of Molina Healthcare from $400.00 to $330.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on shares of Molina Healthcare from $373.00 to $179.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Molina Healthcare from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, June 29th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $225.18.

Molina Healthcare Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $9.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.70 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a current ratio of 1.66, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $178.30 and its 200-day simple moving average is $264.99.

Molina Healthcare (NYSE:MOH - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The company reported $5.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $5.50 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $11.43 billion during 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%.Molina Healthcare's revenue was up 15.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $5.86 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Molina Healthcare, Inc will post 24.4 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Molina Healthcare

In related news, Director Ronna Romney sold 700 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.74, for a total transaction of $107,618.00. Following the sale, the director owned 17,131 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,633,719.94. The trade was a 3.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, COO James Woys acquired 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 4th. The shares were 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 directly owned 74,331 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,591,176.14. This represents a 15.54% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 1.26% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Molina Healthcare

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Amalgamated Bank boosted its stake in Molina Healthcare by 0.3% during the first quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 11,580 shares of the company's stock worth $3,814,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators raised its holdings in Molina Healthcare by 60.7% in the first quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 90 shares of the company's stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. JLB & Associates Inc. raised its holdings in Molina Healthcare by 0.3% in the first quarter. JLB & Associates Inc. now owns 10,626 shares of the company's stock worth $3,500,000 after buying an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. PenderFund Capital Management Ltd. raised its holdings in Molina Healthcare by 0.4% in the first quarter. PenderFund Capital Management Ltd. now owns 10,071 shares of the company's stock worth $3,317,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rothschild Investment LLC raised its holdings in Molina Healthcare by 126.3% in the first quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 86 shares of the company's stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 98.50% of the company's stock.

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.