$UNH

UnitedHealth (UNH), Applied Materials (AMAT), and Citigroup (C) hit fresh 52-week highs. UNH rose 1.58% to $413 intraday after JPMorgan and Mizuho raised price targets. AMAT gained 1.43% to $525.98 after approving a $0.53 quarterly dividend and projecting >30% semiconductor equipment growth. Citigroup rose 1.09% to $135.93 after CFO guidance on market revenue and investment banking fees.

UnitedHealth (UNH) shares rose 65% over the past year. The article says management had previously outlined Medicare Advantage plan exits (over 600,000 members) and narrower networks, targeting 2026 Medicare margins of 2.5% to 3% with about 80% of premium repricing on Jan. 1. In Q2 2026, revenue was $112B and operating earnings $8B (+55% YoY), and the company raised its 2026 outlook.

Humana and UnitedHealth are trimming Medicare Advantage coverage as costs rise. Humana said it will remove more than 500,000 seniors from plans next year for the second straight year, while UnitedHealth is cutting a similar number of plans and enrollees. KFF data cited by the article says cuts are mainly in rural areas, including Wyoming, the Dakotas, New Hampshire, and Vermont.

The Trump administration will end a Biden-era Medicare Part D subsidy for drug-plan insurers starting next year, according to The Wall Street Journal. The program provides about $3.6 billion this year to reduce premium increases. Average premiums fell about 40% in 2025 for 25 million enrollees, but about 75% could pay more by 2027. CMS says the insurer “bailout” is unnecessary; Oz cited UnitedHealth Group as receiving over half the funds.

Luigi Mangione is expected to plead guilty Friday in a federal stalking case tied to the 2024 killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, according to The New York Times citing sources. He also faces New York state murder charges. A pretrial conference is set in Manhattan. Thompson was shot outside the Hilton in Dec 2024. Federal counts carry up to life.

UnitedHealth Group faces an Aug. 7 amended shareholder derivative suit in Minnesota federal court alleging board members ignored cybersecurity and Medicare billing oversight risks for years. The complaint cites insider accounts after UnitedHealth’s $7.8 billion Change Healthcare acquisition and alleges it shut an internal audit showing $200 million in unsupported Medicare claims. UnitedHealth declined comment.

UnitedHealth (UNH) reported a lower medical care ratio of 86.7% versus 89.4% a year earlier, supporting a 55% rise in operating earnings. The company raised 2026 adjusted EPS guidance. UNH cited improved Medicare cost trends but noted $860 million of favorable prior-period development and rising commercial costs. Peers ELV and CVS also updated guidance.

UnitedHealth Group (UNH) shares have outperformed the S&P 500 over the past year and in 2026. After Q2 2026 results on July 16, UNH reported revenue of $112.03B and adjusted EPS of $6.38, both above forecasts, with adjusted operating margin rising to 7.1%. Full-year earnings guidance is $19.50 to $20. Analysts’ consensus is “Strong Buy,” with Bernstein’s $512 target.

A federal judge approved a protective order for Change Healthcare’s stolen dataset in consolidated class actions over its Feb. 2024 cyberattack that affected 193 million people, according to court documents. Plaintiffs’ counsel and experts must handle the data in largely offline, encrypted, air-gapped forensic conditions, limit copies, document chain of custody, report incidents, and destroy data after the case. UnitedHealth Group and units include Change Healthcare and Optum.

A federal judge approved a protective order for Change Healthcare’s stolen data in a multidistrict class action tied to its Feb. 2024 ransomware attack. The order requires largely offline, encrypted handling, chain-of-custody logs, breach reporting, limits on copying, and destruction within 30 days after case resolution. The attack affected 193 million people, according to court documents.