We recently published a list of 10 Best Telehealth Stocks to Buy Now. In this article, we are going to take a look at where UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) stands against other best telehealth stocks to buy right now.
Overview of the American Telehealth Industry
According to Grand View Research, the telehealth market size in the US was valued at $42.54 billion in 2024. It is expected to grow at a notable compound annual growth rate of 23.8% between 2025 and 2030. Some of the primary factors supporting this growth include the rising demand for remote healthcare services, large-scale penetration of connected home services, and high internet usage. In addition, the global adoption of smartphones, advancements in technology, and a surge in government initiatives to develop telehealth programs are also supporting market growth.
Since the cost of in-person healthcare provision is increasing in the country, telehealth presents a significant opportunity in the healthcare sector. According to McKinsey, around $250 billion of the present US healthcare spending can be virtualized. This includes training for medical professionals, regular check-in appointments for chronic diseases, psychiatric care, and more, all administered and accessed through each individual’s preferred device.
READ ALSO: 10 Best Mid Cap Biotech Stocks to Buy and 12 Best Diagnostics Stocks to Invest In Right Now.
Are Healthcare Stocks a Safe Haven Amid Tariff Turmoil?
Some experts view medical, healthcare, and big pharma stocks as immune from trade carnage, making them a safe haven amid the uncertainty brought about by Trump’s tariffs. Since Trump’s tariffs and macroeconomic uncertainties are causing significant market volatility, we discussed the potential of healthcare stocks as a safe haven amidst the ongoing turmoil in a recently published article on the 10 Best Medical Stocks to Buy According to Billionaires. Here is an excerpt from the article:
On April 8, Mizuho Securities America healthcare sector strategist Jared Holz opined that managed care, particularly the government-centric names, are somewhat safe as they are insulated from tariffs as US-based companies. In fact, the economic slowdown is actually beneficial for them as they want less utilization and less patience through the system, which is how they typically beat numbers. He said that managed care is having a good day, and investors might think about owning some companies in the sector.
It is, however, a relative game, as there are several different variables at play, and investors are essentially playing a game of hopscotch in an attempt to jump from one area to another, whether it’s tariffs, drug pricing, or other public policies. He painted a similar picture for medical device stocks that are more US-centric. These two sectors thus have less risk relative to others, making them somewhat of a safe haven.
Our Methodology
We sifted through stock screeners, financial media reports, and ETFs to compile a list of 25 telehealth stocks and chose the top 10 most popular among hedge funds as of Q4 2024. The list is ordered in ascending order of hedge fund sentiment. We sourced the hedge fund sentiment data from Insider Monkey’s database.
Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 275% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 150 percentage points (see more details here).
A senior healthcare professional giving advice to a patient in a clinic.
UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 150
UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) provides healthcare coverage, data consultancy, and software services. It operates through the OptumRx, OptumInsight, OptumHealth, and UnitedHealthCare segments, which have solid operations. UnitedHealthCare, its insurance division, added millions of customers during fiscal 2024 and is continuing to expand its operations. It offers members options for telehealth visits, with either local providers or through its preferred national providers.
In a report released on April 17, Andrew Mok, CFA, from Barclays, maintained a Buy rating on UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) and set a $560.00 price target.
The company reported strong fiscal Q1 2025 results, with revenue reaching $109.6 billion and undergoing a $9.8 billion year-over-year increase. Earnings from operations touched $9.1 billion, and net margin improved to 5.7%. Its UnitedHealthcare segment reported $84.6 billion in revenue, attributed to an increase in consumers served. Optum’s revenue also increased to $63.9 billion, supported by growth in Optum Rx. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) returned nearly $5 billion to shareholders through dividends and share repurchases.
Vulcan Value Partners stated the following regarding UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) in its Q4 2024 investor letter:
“UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH), a company that we have owned several times in the past, is the largest health insurer in the United States. UnitedHealth Group also owns Optum, which is a rapidly growing healthcare services company. The environment for the health insurance business remains positive as growth in healthcare spending, driven by chronic diseases and an aging population, will continue to outpace overall economic growth. The insurance business benefits from powerful network effects as more members attract more providers and vice versa, which reinforces United’s value proposition and bargaining power with each side of the network. We respect UnitedHealth Group’s management team and have been very pleased with their long-term vision and execution.”
Overall, UNH ranks 1st on our list of the best telehealth stocks to buy right now. While we acknowledge the potential for UNH as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and doing so within a shorter time frame. There is an AI stock that went up since the beginning of 2025, while popular AI stocks lost around 25%. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than UNH but trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about this cheapest AI stock.
READ NEXT: 20 Best AI Stocks To Buy Now and 30 Best Stocks to Buy Now According to Billionaires.
Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.
