12 Best Blue Chip Stocks To Invest In According to Short Sellers

9. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 114

Short % of Shares Outstanding: 0.9%

UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) ranks ninth on our list of blue-chip stocks to invest in. It is a multinational health insurance and services company based in the United States. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) operates several subsidiaries including UnitedHealthcare Servic LLC, Optum, Change Healthcare, and United Health Foundation.

UnitedHealth Group’s (NYSE:UNH) primary goal lies in giving back to the community. In the past year, UnitedHealth’s professionals made over 2 million home visits, to identify health emergencies in patients that would have gone unrecognized otherwise.

On the financial front, UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) logged $98.9 billion in revenue, up by nearly $6 billion. The company’s financial results were led by Optum and UnitedHealthcare. Overall, customers in the segment grew by 2.3 million to reach 29.6 million in the United States. Optum, the company’s global healthcare services provider which uses data to optimize care quality, reduce costs, and improve performance, logged $62.9 billion in revenue, up by $6 billion year-over-year.

In less than a decade, UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) has grown its revenue from $101 billion in 2011 to $372 billion in 2023. The company currently provides health coverage to over 50 million people in the United States, a testament to its position in the industry and the value it provides to the world.

Analysts are bullish on UNH and their 12-month median price target of $620 points to a 5% upside from current levels. Overall, 114 investors were bullish on the stock at the end of Q2 2024, with total stakes amounting to $12.5 billion. As of June 30, Fisher Asset Management was the largest shareholder with a position worth $1.57 billion.

Invesco Distributors, Inc. stated the following regarding UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) in its Q2 2024 investor letter:

“UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH): Like many managed care providers, United Health has come under pressure from rising medical costs and higher-than-expected utilization. The stock is currently undervalued based on our analysis. We view the company as a high-quality compounder with secular growth opportunities in the managed care segment. The US Presidential election may cause additional near-term uncertainty, but we believe United Health will be able to rebound once pricing and utilization issues normalize.”