JFrog stock rises as Cantor Fitzgerald maintains Overweight rating after strong Q2
Investing.com - Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) downgraded Molina Healthcare (NYSE:MOH) from Overweight to Equalweight and significantly reduced its price target to $266.00 from $364.00. The healthcare provider, currently trading at $237.22 and commanding a market cap of $12.86 billion, has seen its stock approach its 52-week low of $227.68. According to InvestingPro data, four analysts have recently revised their earnings estimates downward.
The rating change follows Molina’s Monday press release that highlighted increased healthcare utilization across its various insurance segments, prompting Morgan Stanley to update its financial projections for the company.
Morgan Stanley now forecasts Molina’s second-quarter 2025 earnings per share at $5.50, aligning with the company’s preannouncement, and full-year 2025 EPS of $22.06, slightly above the midpoint of Molina’s updated guidance range of $21.50-$22.50.
The investment bank increased its medical loss ratio (MLR) estimates across all of Molina’s insurance products to reflect the utilization challenges: Medicaid MLR to 90.3% from 89.9%, Medicare MLR to 89.5% from 89.0%, and Marketplace MLR to 80.2% from 80.0%.
Morgan Stanley’s new price target of $266 represents a 10.7x price-to-earnings multiple based on 2026 estimates, reflecting both the lowered guidance and caution regarding heightened utilization across Molina’s insurance products.
In other recent news, Molina Healthcare has announced lower-than-expected earnings for the second quarter of 2025, reporting an earnings per share of $5.50, which falls short of the consensus estimate of $6.20. The company has also revised its full-year 2025 earnings guidance down to a range of $21.50 to $22.50 per share, a significant decrease from the previous guidance of at least $24.50. This adjustment is attributed to rising medical costs affecting all of Molina’s business segments, including Medicaid, Medicare, and the ACA marketplace, which are expected to persist through the second half of 2025. UBS and Barclays (LON:BARC) have responded to these developments by lowering their price targets for Molina Healthcare to $260 and $270, respectively, while maintaining neutral ratings. Cantor Fitzgerald, however, maintains an Overweight rating with a price target of $356, noting that recent changes in Medicaid work requirements will likely have a limited impact on the company. Additionally, Barclays has revised its 2025 EPS estimate for Molina to $21.75, reflecting concerns over elevated cost trends. Molina’s preliminary second-quarter GAAP net income is estimated at approximately $4.83 per share, with complete results expected to be released soon.
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