UnitedHealth (UNH) Is Considered a Good Investment by Brokers: Is That True?

Core Viewpoint - The article discusses the reliability of Wall Street analysts' recommendations, particularly focusing on UnitedHealth Group (UNH), and emphasizes the importance of using these recommendations in conjunction with other analytical tools like Zacks Rank to make informed investment decisions [1][5][10]. Summary by Sections Brokerage Recommendations - UnitedHealth currently has an average brokerage recommendation (ABR) of 1.30, indicating a consensus between Strong Buy and Buy, based on recommendations from 25 brokerage firms [2]. - Out of the 25 recommendations, 20 are Strong Buy and 2 are Buy, which account for 80% and 8% of all recommendations respectively [2]. Limitations of Brokerage Recommendations - Studies indicate that brokerage recommendations have limited success in guiding investors towards stocks with the best price increase potential [5]. - Brokerage firms often exhibit a strong positive bias in their ratings due to vested interests, leading to a disproportionate number of Strong Buy recommendations compared to Strong Sell [6][10]. Zacks Rank as an Alternative - Zacks Rank categorizes stocks into five groups based on earnings estimate revisions, which are more effective indicators of near-term stock price performance compared to brokerage recommendations [8][11]. - The Zacks Rank is timely and reflects the latest earnings estimate revisions, unlike the ABR, which may not be up-to-date [12]. Current Earnings Estimates for UnitedHealth - The Zacks Consensus Estimate for UnitedHealth has declined by 12.2% over the past month to $26.36, indicating growing pessimism among analysts regarding the company's earnings prospects [13]. - This decline in earnings estimates has resulted in a Zacks Rank of 4 (Sell) for UnitedHealth, suggesting caution despite the Buy-equivalent ABR [14].