Molina Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:MOH) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Molina Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:MOH) have earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twelve ratings firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, four have given a hold recommendation, six have given a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $407.45.

Several brokerages have commented on MOH. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Molina Healthcare from $435.00 to $420.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. Robert W. Baird initiated coverage on shares of Molina Healthcare in a report on Thursday, May 30th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $405.00 price objective for the company. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $406.00 target price on shares of Molina Healthcare in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $390.00 price target on shares of Molina Healthcare in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, Baird R W raised Molina Healthcare to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 30th.

Insider Transactions at Molina Healthcare

In related news, COO James Woys sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $345.15, for a total transaction of $3,451,500.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 53,613 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,504,526.95. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, COO James Woys sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $345.15, for a total transaction of $3,451,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 53,613 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,504,526.95. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Ronna Romney sold 250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $343.27, for a total transaction of $85,817.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 16,945 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,816,710.15. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Molina Healthcare

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Molina Healthcare by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,585,954 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,379,571,000 after acquiring an additional 23,715 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors increased its stake in Molina Healthcare by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 5,490,147 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,983,645,000 after purchasing an additional 14,775 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in shares of Molina Healthcare by 12.8% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,831,100 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,384,215,000 after buying an additional 436,060 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its stake in shares of Molina Healthcare by 5.4% during the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 2,430,283 shares of the company’s stock worth $878,086,000 after buying an additional 123,894 shares during the period. Finally, FMR LLC grew its holdings in shares of Molina Healthcare by 1.0% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,175,796 shares of the company’s stock valued at $713,422,000 after buying an additional 22,583 shares during the last quarter. 98.50% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Molina Healthcare Price Performance

MOH stock opened at $307.04 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $17.99 billion, a PE ratio of 16.66, a P/E/G ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.57. Molina Healthcare has a 12 month low of $273.58 and a 12 month high of $423.92. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $341.15 and a 200 day moving average price of $367.26. The company has a current ratio of 1.49, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53.

Molina Healthcare (NYSE:MOH) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The company reported $5.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.46 by $0.27. The business had revenue of $9.93 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.45 billion. Molina Healthcare had a net margin of 2.99% and a return on equity of 29.86%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 21.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $5.81 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Molina Healthcare will post 23.56 earnings per share for the current year.

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.