UnitedHealth Group is a diversified health and well-being company that operates through two main businesses: Optum and UnitedHealthcare. The company aims to enhance health system performance by improving access, affordability, outcomes, and experiences . UnitedHealth Group offers a range of health benefits and services through its various segments, including care delivery, analytics, technology, and pharmacy care . The company's significant revenue drivers are its UnitedHealthcare and Optum segments, which collectively contribute to its overall financial performance .
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UnitedHealthcare - Offers a comprehensive range of health benefits and is divided into three sub-segments:
- UnitedHealthcare Employer & Individual - Provides health benefit plans and services to employers and individuals.
- UnitedHealthcare Medicare & Retirement - Offers health and well-being services to individuals aged 65 and older.
- UnitedHealthcare Community & State - Delivers health benefits and services to state programs and communities.
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Optum - Comprises three segments focused on different aspects of health services:
- Optum Health - Focuses on care delivery and management to improve health outcomes.
- Optum Insight - Provides analytics and technology services to enhance healthcare operations.
- Optum Rx - Offers pharmacy care services to optimize medication management and delivery.
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| Name | Position | External Roles | Short Bio | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Andrew Witty ExecutiveBoard | CEO | None | Andrew Witty has been CEO of UnitedHealth Group since February 2021. He previously served as CEO of Optum and President of UNH. He joined UNH as a director in 2017 and has led significant growth initiatives. | View Report → |
Chris Zaetta Executive | EVP, Chief Legal Officer, and Corporate Secretary | None | Chris Zaetta became EVP, Chief Legal Officer, and Corporate Secretary in June 2024. He was previously Chief Legal Officer at Optum. | |
Erin McSweeney Executive | EVP, Chief People Officer | None | Erin McSweeney has been EVP and Chief People Officer since March 2022. She previously served as Chief of Staff to the Office of the CEO and as EVP, Chief HR Officer at Optum. | |
John Rex Executive | President and CFO | None | John Rex has been CFO since June 2016 and became President and CFO in April 2024. He previously served as CFO of Optum and was a Managing Director at JP Morgan. | |
Rupert Bondy Executive | EVP, Chief Legal Officer, and Corporate Secretary | None | Rupert Bondy has been EVP and Chief Legal Officer since February 2022. He previously held senior legal roles at Reckitt Benckiser and BP plc. | |
Thomas Roos Executive | SVP, Chief Accounting Officer | None | Thomas Roos has been Chief Accounting Officer since August 2015. He was previously a Partner at Deloitte & Touche LLP. | |
Charles Baker Board | Director | President of NCAA | Charles Baker joined the UNH Board in November 2023. He is the former Governor of Massachusetts and CEO of Harvard Pilgrim Health Care. | |
F. William McNabb III Board | Director | Director at IBM; Member of Wharton Leadership Advisory Board; Member of Columbia Law School’s Millstein Center Advisory Board; Board Member of CECP | McNabb has been a director since 2018. He is the former Chairman and CEO of Vanguard Group and serves on IBM's board. | |
John Noseworthy, M.D. Board | Director | None | John Noseworthy, M.D., has been a director since 2019. He is the former CEO of Mayo Clinic and a renowned healthcare leader. | |
Kristen Gil Board | Director | None | Kristen Gil has been a director since December 2022. She is the former VP and Business Finance Officer at Alphabet, Inc. (Google). | |
Michele Hooper Board | Lead Independent Director | President and CEO of The Directors’ Council; Director at United Airlines Holdings, Inc. | Michele Hooper has been a director since 2007 and Lead Independent Director since October 2021. She is a corporate governance expert and leads The Directors’ Council. | |
Paul Garcia Board | Director | Director at Deluxe Corporation; Director at Repay Holdings Corporation | Paul Garcia has been a director since 2021. He is the retired Chairman and CEO of Global Payments Inc.. | |
Stephen Hemsley Board | Non-Executive Chair of the Board | Director at Cargill, Inc. | Stephen Hemsley has been with UNH since 1997 and served as CEO from 2006 to 2017. He became Non-Executive Chair in November 2019. | |
Timothy Flynn Board | Director | Director at Walmart Inc. | Timothy Flynn has been a director since 2017. He is the former Chairman of KPMG International and serves on Walmart's board. | |
Valerie Montgomery Rice Board | Director | President and CEO of Morehouse School of Medicine; Director at 23andMe Holding Co. | Valerie Montgomery Rice has been a director since 2017. She is a renowned infertility specialist and serves as President and CEO of Morehouse School of Medicine. |
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Given the simultaneous pressures from CMS Medicare rate cuts, the Inflation Reduction Act impacts, and increased specialty drug costs, how specifically do you expect these factors to affect your Medicare Advantage margins in 2025, and what mitigation strategies are in place to address them?
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Your initial 2025 EPS guidance suggests approximately 8% growth, which is below your long-term target of 13–16%; can you elaborate on the key factors driving this conservative outlook and your confidence in returning to the target range in subsequent years?
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With Medicaid redeterminations leading to higher acuity among remaining members and lagging state rate adjustments, how are you managing the timing mismatch in Medicaid funding, and when do you anticipate alignment between rates and current care activity levels?
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You mentioned aggressive hospital coding intensity increases adding unnecessary costs; what specific actions are you taking to address this upcoding issue, and how soon do you expect to see these efforts positively impact your cost structure?
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While investing heavily in AI and technology modernization for 2025, can you detail how these investments will contribute to earnings growth and operational efficiency in the near term, especially amid existing margin pressures?
Notable M&A activity and strategic investments in the past 3 years.
| Company | Year | Details |
|---|---|---|
Multiple healthcare companies | 2024 | In 2024, UnitedHealth Group entered into agreements to acquire multiple companies in the healthcare sector with anticipated considerations evolving from approximately $4 billion as of March 31, 2024 to $6 billion by June 30, 2024, and eventually completing transactions worth around $10 billion in July 2024, excluding the payoff of acquired indebtedness. |
Change Healthcare | 2022 | Completed on October 3, 2022, the acquisition involved approximately $14 billion (excluding disposition proceeds and the payoff of acquired indebtedness) to create a more integrated health system by enhancing core clinical, administrative, and payment processes; the deal also featured a $2.00 per share special cash dividend and a $650 million fee provision tied to potential legal challenges. |
Recent press releases and 8-K filings for UNH.
- UnitedHealth Group shares trade at approximately 10× 2028 EPS, significantly above the ~6× multiple for other health insurers.
- The company is encountering across-the-board issues, including worsened Medicaid and healthcare exchange fundamentals.
- Unlike CVS, which peaked in 2024 and expects tailwinds, UnitedHealth’s challenges are hitting their stride in 2025.
- UnitedHealth named Wayne S. DeVeydt as its new CFO, effective September 2, 2025, with John F. Rex moving to a strategic advisor role.
- The company’s shares have plunged 44% year-to-date and 54% over the past six months, erasing over $35 billion in market value amid rising medical costs and regulatory scrutiny.
- UnitedHealth’s 2025 outlook now forecasts earnings and revenue below Wall Street expectations, driven by an increase in its medical care ratio to 89.4% in Q2 2025 and a 7.5% surge in Medicare Advantage expenses.
- DeVeydt’s compensation package includes a $1 million base salary, a target bonus equal to 2× salary, an annual stock award of $10 million, a $1.2 million signing bonus, and a $5 million sign-on equity grant.
- UnitedHealth Group names Wayne S. DeVeydt as Chief Financial Officer effective September 2, 2025; John F. Rex will become strategic advisor to the CEO on the same date.
- DeVeydt, 55, joins from Bain Capital where he was managing director and previously served as CFO of Anthem (2007–2016) and CEO of Surgery Partners; his package includes a $1,000,000 base salary, 200% bonus target, $10,000,000 annual stock award target (pro-rated to $3,000,000 for 2025), plus a $1,200,000 sign-on bonus and $5,000,000 sign-on equity award.
- Rex, 63, has served as CFO since 2016 and joined UnitedHealth in 2012; he will advise on strategic matters under his existing employment contract.
- Investor Steve Weiss exited his UnitedHealth position after the stock fell through his stop at $267, citing expectations of “dead money” ahead.
- He retains a small residual stake, praising management moves like Hemsley’s return and CFO/President John Rex, but warns legacy business burdens will delay profitability until next year.
- Weiss redeployed capital into FTAI Aviation, viewing its recent strong quarter as undervalued and targeting a share price of $200.
- Stock down nearly 50% since mid-May, its worst annual performance in over a decade, driven by profit declines in Medicare Advantage and Optum Health units and tightened V28 reimbursement rules.
- CEO Andrew Witty resigned, with former CEO Stephen Hemsley reinstated to stabilize operations and restore investor confidence.
- Facing criminal and civil DOJ investigations over alleged questionable Medicare billing practices, posing significant legal and financial risks.
- Raymond James’ John Ransom argues that UnitedHealth’s shares trade at a 30–40% premium versus peers even with expected FY 2025 EPS of $18–20, while Humana and CVS offer lower P/E entry points (~6x and ~8x, respectively).
- Though UnitedHealth can reprice most of its insurance book at year-end and benefits from a diversified Optum and commercial insurance franchise, its government businesses are currently underperforming.
- The Optum Health risk-bearing segment, a $60 billion business, faces 1–2% Medicare Advantage margins, raising concerns about the economics of taking on risk for competitors.
- A federal investigation may lead to behavioral and reputational changes—such as softer coding and prior-authorization practices—that could further pressure already thin margins, beyond any eventual fine.
- UnitedHealthcare will cover Heartflow Plaque Analysis across all lines of business, effective October 1, 2025 for patients with acute or stable chest pain and 1–70% stenosis.
- This policy update aligns with recently issued EviCore radiology guidelines, making UnitedHealthcare the first insurer to adopt such coverage nationally.
- Heartflow Plaque Analysis is FDA-cleared with a reported 95% agreement versus IVUS in a prospective global trial, and it changes medical management in over half of patients beyond CCTA alone.
- Coverage follows DECIDE registry findings of an 18.7 mg/dL LDL reduction, associated with an estimated 15% decrease in cardiac event risk.
- UnitedHealth Group agreed on June 17, 2025 to sell $3.0 billion of senior unsecured notes: $500 million of 4.400% Notes due June 15, 2028; $750 million of 4.650% Notes due January 15, 2031; $1.0 billion of 5.300% Notes due June 15, 2035; and $750 million of 5.950% Notes due June 15, 2055.
- The notes were issued on June 20, 2025 pursuant to the Company’s automatic shelf registration on Form S-3 and an indenture dated February 4, 2008.
- BofA Securities, Barclays Capital, Citigroup Global Markets and J.P. Morgan Securities acted as joint book-running underwriters for the offering.
- Shareholders approved Stephen Hemsley’s compensation package with only 60% support, the weakest say-on-pay vote since at least 2020.
- The package includes a $1 million annual salary and a $60 million stock option award vesting after three years, with no additional equity awards for his first three years.
- Approval comes amid investor concerns over a sharp market cap decline, a rare earnings miss, a major cyberattack, and the murder of a top executive.
- UnitedHealth faces federal investigations into alleged Medicare fraud and a shareholder lawsuit tied to the executive’s murder, while Hemsley pledges policy reviews to restore trust.
- ISS criticized the award’s lack of performance-vesting criteria and its front-loaded nature, highlighting governance concerns.
- New CEO Steve Hemsley apologized for the company’s recent earnings underperformance and temporarily suspended its earnings outlook.
- He pledged to address rising costs and improve quality in the Medicare Advantage business.
- UnitedHealth is under regulatory scrutiny for its use of AI and diagnosis data, and is defending against a patient lawsuit alleging AI-based coverage denials.
- The company’s PBM subsidiary Optum Rx faces FTC scrutiny within the pharmacy benefit management industry.