Unitedhealth Group Stock Term Paper

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Corporate Finance

UnitedHealth Group Stock

This report will provide insight into the UnitedHealth Group Stock from an investor's perspective. The report will show a financial analysis included with an overview of the company's current health standing. The paper will also provide a summary of the company and their products and services. The key to any intelligent investing strategy lies in the investor knowing what a stock is really worth and also if it is safe to buy, sell or hold. Therefore, since this report is from an investor's perspective, the company's stock and industry will be reviewed so as to present a big picture of where United Health is today and where they want to go in the future.

Over the five past years the UnitedHealth Group stock has been making great progress as analysts consistently consider the group a strong buy option. As can be seen from the two stock splits over the past five years, the company is geared to keep small investors interested in addition to the support they receive from the mutual fund industry as well as other institutions:

Introduction

It is often very tempting for investors to use a company's past performance as the one and only buy, sell or hold indicator and therefore many portfolios are built on only that philosophy. As a rule, it usually matters very little how a stock has done in the past and certainly should not be the only gauge to move investors. A more solid rule to follow would be one that points to the future as opposed to the past. In other words, in most cases it is only important for the investor to predict where the company will be and how they will do in the future as opposed to how good or bad they have done in the past.

Of course there are exceptions and in some cases a company's past and future must be considered before taking the jumping in. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated as a stock is one of those exceptions. This company has a solid past performance and a bright future ahead of it. Historically, the company has done well and that can be demonstrated thought the steady growth and sound profits. But, if the future is the rule of choice, then UnitedHealth Group Inc. is also a good fit. The brand name is well recognized and the future looks extremely promising. This report will attempt to present an insight into UnitedHealth Group Incorporated

History

Since the company was created, UnitedHealth Group and its subsidiary companies have consistently led their industry and marketplace by consistently offering new and important products and services. The company prides itself on making health care services more easily available and affordable for their customers. The company consistently strives to improve its quality by assisting physicians, patients and employers in make better informed health care choices. In 1974, a small company called Charter Med Incorporated was founded by a group of physicians and health care professionals. Their objective was to expand health coverage options for consumers.

In 1977 United HealthCare Corporation acquired Charter Med Incorporated. It was not until late 1984 when United HealthCare Corporation went public after only a few years before offering the initial network-based health plan for seniors as an alternative for Medicare. In 1998 after several successful years, United HealthCare Corporation changed its name to the UnitedHealth Group. With the name change came a strategic realignment with new off-shoot companies becoming successful subsidiaries:

UnitedHealthcare

Ovations

Uniprise

Specialized Care Services

Ingenix.

In 2001, United Health implemented a new Web technology that greatly improved the services for the physicians in their network which enabled the company to electronically check benefit eligibility for patients and submit and review claims.

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With the new web-based software, the company continued to steadily increase revenue and profits as well as raise their customer satisfaction index. AS the baby boomer generation nears final retirement, the company will greatly benefit from the additional healthcare requirements of our aging population.

Overview

UnitedHealth Group Incorporated focuses being the world's best diversified health and well-being services provider. The company currently serves over fifty million Americans and that number seems as though it will continue to rise. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated is a provider of cost-effective healthcare services and resources. The company has near a half million physicians and almost four thousand hospitals contracted throughout the United States. The company successfully manages near fifty billion dollars in combined healthcare spending for almost two hundred thousand small to midsized employer-customers and other small consumer groups. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated's main focus centers around improving the United States healthcare system by the use of technology and other simplifying administrative tools and components. The objective is to stream line the healthcare delivery system so better informed decisions can be made for both the patients and the medical facilities.

United Health Group has an excellent reputation as a company that organizes, supports and facilitates access to health and well-being services for small to mid-sized employers. The company also supports individuals through a technologically advanced network-based benefit offering system. The company is highly touted by the media:

UnitedHealth Group was ranked No. 3 on the 2003 BusinessWeek 50, a list of the nation's best-performing large public corporations

Fortune magazine (April 14, 2003) ranked UnitedHealth Group No. 63 in the 2003 rankings of the 500 largest U.S. corporations based on 2002 revenues.

Forbes (January 2004) included UnitedHealth Group on its 2004 list of the 400 best big companies in America, based on long- and short-term growth, return on capital and other performance measures.

Fortune magazine (July 21, 2003) ranked UnitedHealth Group No. 167 on its 2003 list of 500 of the world's largest companies, based on revenues

Rankings published in Fortune magazine since 1995 have listed UnitedHealth Group the first or second most admired company in the health care industry

Computerworld magazine (May 6, 2002) listed UnitedHealth Group on its annual list of the 100 Best Places to Work in IT for the ninth consecutive year

Competitors Review from Yahoo Finance

Competitors

DIRECT COMPETITOR COMPARISON

UNH

AET Pvt1

CI

Industry

Market Cap: 38.22B 12.59B N/A 9.10B 2.70B

Employees: 33,000 27,600 150,0001 32,700 3.20K

Rev. Growth (ttm): 6.70% -21.10% N/A 0.30% 11.60%

Revenue (ttm): 29.99B 18.33B 162.80B1 18.81B 3.67B

Gross Margin (ttm): 27.50% N/A N/A N/A 19.78%

EBITDA (ttm): 3.47B N/A N/A N/A 148.33M

Oper. Margins (ttm): 10.53% 8.02% N/A 4.80% 6.88%

Net Income (ttm): 1.98B 929.60M N/A 620.00M 93.00M

EPS (ttm): 3.194 5.804 N/A 4.411 2.02

PE (ttm): 19.27-14.15 N/A 14.63-14.42

PEG (ttm): 0.98 0.86 N/A 1.14 0.98

PS (ttm): 1.29 0.71 N/A 0.49 0.73

AET = Aetna Inc.

Pvt1 =

Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association (privately held)

CI = CIGNA Corp

Industry = Insurance (Accident & Health)

As of 2002

INSURANCE COMPANIES RANKED BY SALES

Company Symbol Price Change Market Cap P/E

ALLIANZ AKTIENG

AZ 10.59 0.47% N/A 25.15

ING GROEP NV

ING 21.28 0.42% N/A 8.92

AMER International GROUP

AIG 71.96 0.22% 187.74B 18.98

AXA

AXA 20.53 0.10% 36.18B 95.93

Nippon Life Insurance Company

Assicurazioni Generali S.p.A.

State Farm Insurance Companies

LEGAL&GENL GRP P

LGGNY.PK 8.65 0.00% N/A N/A

The Dai-ichi Mutual Life Insurance Company

Financial Data from Yahoo Finance

TRADING INFORMATION

Stock Price History

Beta: 0.29

52-Week Change: 36.98%

52-Week Change (relative to S&P500): 12.68%

52-Week High (13-Apr-04): 68.50

52-Week Low (2-May-03): 44.725

50-Day Moving Average: 63.48

200-Day Moving Average: 55.90

Share Statistics

Average Volume (3-month): 2,919,863

Average Volume (10 day): 4,362,000

Shares Outstanding:.....

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