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Investing.com - Mizuho has reiterated an Outperform rating on CVS Health (NYSE:CVS) with a price target of $80.00 following the release of 2026 Medicare Advantage Star Ratings by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).
CVS Health maintained approximately the same percentage of members in 4.0+ Star plans, which aligned with Mizuho’s expectations. This stability in Star Ratings comes as other companies like Elevance Health (ELV), Centene (CNC), and Molina Healthcare (MOH) showed improvements in the percentage of their members in 4.0+ Star plans compared to last year. UnitedHealth Group has shown strong performance with 9.7% revenue growth over the last twelve months.
Most companies in the sector saw weighted average Stars increase, while CVS Health and Humana (HUM) experienced slight declines in their weighted averages. Humana had previously released its weighted average Star rating for the company ahead of the official CMS announcement.
UnitedHealth Group (UNH) and Humana had preemptively released their 2026 Medicare Advantage Star Ratings, highlighting the percentage of members in 4.0+ Star plans before the official CMS release.
Mizuho views the stable ratings as a positive development for CVS Health, noting that it "removes a valuation overhang from the stock." The firm also considers the results positive for Elevance Health, Centene, and Molina Healthcare due to their improved metrics.
In other recent news, UnitedHealth Group is preparing to release its third-quarter earnings on October 28, with analysts projecting earnings per share of $2.81 and revenue of $113.14 billion. Ahead of this report, Bernstein SocGen Group increased its price target for UnitedHealth Group to $433, maintaining an Outperform rating. Similarly, KeyBanc raised its price target to $400, keeping an Overweight rating on the company. UnitedHealthcare, a subsidiary of UnitedHealth Group, announced its 2026 Medicare Advantage plans, ensuring coverage for 94% of eligible beneficiaries despite funding cuts. Additionally, UnitedHealthcare has entered into a national agreement with Plus Therapeutics for the CNSide Cerebrospinal Fluid Tumor Cell Enumeration test, set to take effect in September 2025. This agreement will provide coverage for over 51 million people across the United States. These developments highlight UnitedHealth Group’s ongoing strategic initiatives and analyst confidence in its performance.
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