Molina Healthcare (NYSE:MOH) Stock Rating Upgraded by Wall Street Zen

Molina Healthcare (NYSE:MOH - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities researchers at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report released on Saturday.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently commented on MOH. Barclays dropped their target price on Molina Healthcare from $351.00 to $347.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, June 9th. Baird R W cut Molina Healthcare from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Mizuho lifted their price objective on Molina Healthcare from $376.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on Molina Healthcare in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $414.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley began coverage on Molina Healthcare in a report on Monday, June 9th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $364.00 price objective on the stock. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $364.21.

Molina Healthcare Stock Performance

NYSE MOH opened at $293.19 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $311.43 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $306.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.16, a PEG ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 0.56. Molina Healthcare has a fifty-two week low of $262.32 and a fifty-two week high of $365.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a current ratio of 1.63.

Molina Healthcare (NYSE:MOH - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The company reported $6.08 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $5.96 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $11.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.86 billion. Molina Healthcare had a return on equity of 28.38% and a net margin of 2.81%. The company's revenue was up 12.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $5.73 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Molina Healthcare will post 24.4 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Richard M. Schapiro sold 669 shares of Molina Healthcare stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $320.50, for a total transaction of $214,414.50. Following the sale, the director now owns 11,244 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,603,702. The trade was a 5.62% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Joseph M. Zubretsky sold 87,500 shares of Molina Healthcare stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $320.06, for a total transaction of $28,005,250.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 257,715 shares in the company, valued at approximately $82,484,262.90. The trade was a 25.35% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Molina Healthcare

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MOH. CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its position in Molina Healthcare by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 8,765 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,551,000 after purchasing an additional 228 shares during the period. Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Molina Healthcare by 482.4% in the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 297 shares of the company's stock valued at $86,000 after purchasing an additional 246 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund grew its stake in shares of Molina Healthcare by 13.8% in the fourth quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 69,568 shares of the company's stock worth $20,248,000 after acquiring an additional 8,460 shares in the last quarter. Oxbow Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Molina Healthcare by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Oxbow Advisors LLC now owns 7,313 shares of the company's stock worth $2,128,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Funds Management LTD acquired a new position in shares of Molina Healthcare in the fourth quarter worth $2,857,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.50% of the company's stock.

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.

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