COMPARE · Data as of August 21, 2026
CNC vs UNH
Verdict: Side-by-side breakdown using the Bull Rankings model. CNC scored 57.6, UNH scored 66.4 — UNH leads.
Compare another set
Different reporting periods. CNC's fundamentals are as of June 2026, but UNH's are as of March 2026 — a 3-month gap. Growth, margin and valuation figures below therefore describe different windows and aren't strictly like-for-like.
CNC
Centene Corporation
57.6
$65.02 · $32.1B
fundamentals as of
Score gap
8.8
UNH leads
UNH
UnitedHealth Group Incorporated
66.4
$390.11 · $350.2B
fundamentals as of
At a glance · who leads each dimension, on the model's own rules
- Fastest growthCNC+19.4%
- Strongest balance sheetUNH0.69
- Highest qualityUNH62 / 100
- Largest discount to fair valueCNC-77%
Side by side · every name on one set of axes
The model, pillar by pillar (0–100 each)
CNC
stronger →← stronger
UNH
27
Qualityreturns · margins · balance sheet
62
86
Growthrevenue & earnings expansion
87
82
Valuevaluation vs sector peers
55
UNH is stronger on 2 of 3 pillars.
Fundamentals, head-to-head
CNC
UNH
$9.0bB+
FCF
$19.7bA-
+19.4%B+
Rev
+11.8%B
0.71C+
D/E
0.69C+
0.2xA
P/S
—
0.88B+
PEG
1.20B+
—
P/E
25.1xB
Winner per row is the stronger grade; where grades tie, the better figure breaks it. A true tie or a missing value shows no highlight.
Valuation · DCF cross-check
CNC
UNH
77% below
Price vs fair valuelower is cheaper
32% below
decline
Growth the price implies10-yr FCF · lower = less priced in
~0%/yr
+300%
1-yr DCF upside
+28%
+330%
5-yr DCF upside
+46%
+377%
10-yr DCF upside
+79%
The DCF is a cross-check on intrinsic value, separate from the quality-growth score above.
Model signals
CNC
No notable signals flagged.
UNH
Why this score
- Raising its dividend
The companies
CNCCentene Corporation
Why now
Healthcare Plans · market cap $32.1b. 6% off the 52-week high of $69.36. Revenue growing +19%, comfortably above the S&P median. PEG 0.88 — paying under fair value for the growth rate. 18 sell-side analysts rate this a Buy with a mean 1-yr target of $71.67 (implying +10% upside).
Moat
Turnaround / out-of-favor name — GAAP-unprofitable for now, so the durability case is forward-looking: it rests on a recovery (margin normalization, a cyclical upturn or restructuring) or an un-monetized asset (IP / network effects / first-mover position) rather than on current reported results.
Risk
Currently unprofitable (margin -2.8%) — path to GAAP profitability is the core thesis risk. ROE -20% is below the long-run sustainable threshold of ~10% — capital efficiency would need to improve for the equity base to compound at the market rate.
UNHUnitedHealth Group Incorporated
Why now
Healthcare Plans · market cap $350.2b. 15% off the 52-week high of $461.62. Revenue growing +12%, comfortably above the S&P median. 26 sell-side analysts rate this a Buy with a mean 1-yr target of $475.23 (implying +22% upside).
Moat
ROE 14% meets the long-run market sustainable threshold — solid but not differentiated; the durability comes from elsewhere. FCF converts 139% of net income — earnings translate cleanly into cash, a sign that working capital and capex are well-disciplined. $350.2b market cap places it among the largest companies in the sector — distribution, R&D, and customer-acquisition costs amortize across a base peers can't replicate.
Risk
Net margin 3.1% is thin — operating leverage cuts both ways; input-cost inflation or pricing pressure hits the bottom line first.
Verdict — model-derived comparison
Generating verdict… typically 5–10 seconds
Not investment advice. The Bull Rankings publishes a quantitative ranking model and accompanying analysis for general informational purposes only. Nothing on this page is a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any security; nothing is personalized to your circumstances, risk tolerance, or tax situation. Investing carries the risk of loss — invest at your own risk and consider consulting a licensed financial professional before acting on anything you read here. See terms and methodology for full disclosures.
Where CNC and UNH diverge
On the headline score the gap is 8.8 points in favor of UNH. They get there differently, though — each leads on a different pillar, so the better pick depends on which you weight.
- QualityCNC 27.1 · UNH 61.6UNH +34.5
- ValueCNC 81.9 · UNH 55.0CNC +26.9
- GrowthCNC 86.0 · UNH 86.6level
Pillars run 0–100 against sector peers, so a score is a statement about a company relative to its own industry rather than to the other name here. A wide Value gap usually means the market already prices the difference in quality or growth — which is the trade-off this comparison comes down to.