As medical stocks hold four of the top 10 industry groups among the 197 industries IBD tracks, UnitedHealth Group leads the list of new buys by the best mutual funds. And now UNH stock is back in a buy zone with its relative strength line just shy of a new high.
UnitedHealth raked in an estimated $296 million. But Vertex Pharmaceuticals, Pfizer, Merck, Bristol Myers Squibb and Eli Lilly all garnered over $100 million from leading money managers.
Fellow managed care leaders Elevance Health, which just changed its name from Anthem, Humana, Centene and Cigna also made this stock screen of new buys by top funds.
UNH stock also joins VRTX on both the IBD 50 and IBD Leaderboard lists of the best stocks to buy and watch.
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UnitedHealth Outpacing 95% Of All Stocks
In addition to its namesake UnitedHealth business, the megacap health company also has Optum under its umbrella.
UnitedHealthcare offers a full range of health benefits. It focuses on providing affordable coverage, simplifying the health care experience and delivering access to high-quality care. Optum delivers care aided by technology and data.
UnitedHealth is among the top-rated leaders in the managed care industry group, which ranks a strong No. 11 in Stock Checkup. Its 95 Composite Rating means it is outperforming 95% of all stocks in terms of the most important stock-picking traits.
Centene and Humana lead the group, with each rating a 98. Molina Healthcare and ELV stock also earn strong marks.
On July 15, UnitedHealth reported Q2 earnings, posting a jump to 19% EPS growth. Sales growth remains steady, ranging from 11% to 15% over the last five quarters.
UNH Stock Back In Buy Zone
UnitedHealth briefly cleared a 518.80 buy point in a cup with handle on July 8. After retreating from that entry, UNH stock soon found support at its 50-day moving average.
After moving back into the buy zone, the stock eased back again but immediately found support at its 21-day line.
UnitedHealth kicked off the week with a 1.5% gain in tepid volume Monday. The stock remains in the buy zone, which extends to 544.74.
Follow Matthew Galgani on Twitter at @IBD_MGalgani.
