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CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (CF) vs UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (UNH)

CF
CF Industries Holdings, Inc.
$125.56
VS
UNH
UnitedHealth Group Incorporated
$280.44

Rewards

CF
  • ★CF Industries Holdings, Inc. has maintained ROIC above 15% for 4 consecutive years, indicating a durable competitive advantage.
  • ★Return on equity has consistently exceeded 20% over 4 years, indicating efficient use of shareholder capital.
  • ★Share count has been reduced by 21% over the past 4 years through buybacks, increasing each share's claim on earnings.
UNH
  • ★5 insider purchases over the past 12 months with a buy/sell ratio above 3:1 — a sustained pattern of insider confidence.
  • ★Dividend yield of 3.15% with a consistent or growing payout over the past 4 years.

Risks

CF
  • ⚠Trailing P/E of 14.0x is 54% above the historical average of 9.1x — the stock trades at a premium to its own history.
  • ⚠20 insider sales totaling $69.6M with no purchases in the past 3 months — insiders are reducing their exposure.
  • ⚠Free cash flow has declined at a 19.0% CAGR over the past 4 years — a concerning trend.
UNH
  • ⚠ROIC has declined by 7.9 percentage points over the observed period, which may signal competitive erosion.
  • ⚠Gross margin of 18.5% is low, suggesting a competitive or commodity-like market with limited pricing power.
  • ⚠FCF yield of 5.4% suggests reasonable valuation assuming continued moderate growth.

Key Valuation Metrics

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CF
UNH
Valuation
$1.80B
Free Cash Flow
$13.86B
9.20%
FCF Yield
5.45%
14.01
Trailing P/E
21.18
16.80
Forward P/E
14.08
Quality & Moat
17.32%
ROIC
0.64%
18.71%
ROE
11.85%
38.45%
Gross Margin
18.53%
0.38
PEG Ratio
N/A
Balance Sheet Safety
0.47
Debt / Equity
0.82
N/A
Interest Coverage
N/A
0.51
Net Debt / EBITDA
2.54
1.59%
Dividend Yield
3.15%
CF: 7Ties: 1UNH: 3
CFUNH

Historical Fundamentals

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CF

Price ÷ Earnings Per Share — how many years of current earnings you're paying for at today's price. Lower P/E may indicate undervaluation.

UNH

Price ÷ Earnings Per Share — how many years of current earnings you're paying for at today's price. Lower P/E may indicate undervaluation.

Price ÷ Earnings Per Share — how many years of current earnings you're paying for at today's price. Lower P/E may indicate undervaluation.

$1 Retained Earnings Test

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CF
$-1.50
created per $1 retained over 3 years
Market Cap Declined
Σ Retained
$3.20B
Δ Market Cap
$-4.79B
Buffett's "$1 Test": For every $1 of earnings retained, has management created at least $1 of market value?
> $1 created per $1 retained = Value Creator · < $1 created = Value Destroyer
UNH
$-7.37
created per $1 retained over 3 years
Market Cap Declined
Σ Retained
$26.63B
Δ Market Cap
$-196.16B
Buffett's "$1 Test": For every $1 of earnings retained, has management created at least $1 of market value?
> $1 created per $1 retained = Value Creator · < $1 created = Value Destroyer

Buffett's "$1 Test": For every $1 of earnings retained, has management created at least $1 of market value?
> $1 created per $1 retained = Value Creator · < $1 created = Value Destroyer

Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) Analysis

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CF
5.0% Margin of Safety
Price is 5.0% below estimated fair value
Current Price: $125.56
Fair Value: $132.20
Strongly undervalued
Undervalued
Fairly valued
Overvalued
Strongly overvalued
UNH
4.9% Margin of Safety
Price is 4.9% below estimated fair value
Current Price: $280.44
Fair Value: $294.90
Strongly undervalued
Undervalued
Fairly valued
Overvalued
Strongly overvalued

Reverse DCF — Market-Implied Growth

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CF

What growth rate is the market pricing in at $126?

+3.4%
Market-Implied Owner Earnings Growth
Standard FCF implies +0.5%

The market implies +3.4% Owner Earnings growth, above historical trends.

Standard FCF implies a demanding +0.5%, reflecting heavy growth investment.

UNH

What growth rate is the market pricing in at $280?

+11.1%
Market-Implied Owner Earnings Growth
Standard FCF implies +9.2%

The market implies +11.1% Owner Earnings growth, above historical trends.

Standard FCF implies a demanding +9.2%, reflecting heavy growth investment.

Economic Moat Score

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CF
41/100
Narrow Moat
70+ Wide · 40-69 Narrow · <40 None

Narrow moat with roic consistency as the key competitive advantage. Improving revenue predictability would strengthen the moat.

Composite score measuring competitive advantage durability across four dimensions: returns above cost of capital, pricing power stability, revenue predictability, and capital efficiency. Based on 4 years of fundamental data.
UNH
64/100
Narrow Moat
70+ Wide · 40-69 Narrow · <40 None

Narrow moat with revenue predictability as the key competitive advantage. Improving margin stability would strengthen the moat.

Composite score measuring competitive advantage durability across four dimensions: returns above cost of capital, pricing power stability, revenue predictability, and capital efficiency. Based on 4 years of fundamental data.

Forensic Accounting

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CF
-2.83
Unlikely Manipulator
Above -1.78 = likely manipulator · -2.22 to -1.78 = grey zone

M-Score Trend

Beneish's 8-variable model estimates the probability of earnings manipulation. An M-Score above -1.78 signals elevated risk — companies in this range have historically been 3-5× more likely to be manipulating earnings. Scores between -2.22 and -1.78 fall in a grey zone warranting further investigation.
UNH
-2.45
Unlikely Manipulator
Above -1.78 = likely manipulator · -2.22 to -1.78 = grey zone

M-Score Trend

Beneish's 8-variable model estimates the probability of earnings manipulation. An M-Score above -1.78 signals elevated risk — companies in this range have historically been 3-5× more likely to be manipulating earnings. Scores between -2.22 and -1.78 fall in a grey zone warranting further investigation.

Beneish's 8-variable model estimates the probability of earnings manipulation. An M-Score above -1.78 signals elevated risk — companies in this range have historically been 3-5× more likely to be manipulating earnings. Scores between -2.22 and -1.78 fall in a grey zone warranting further investigation.

Ownership Breakdown

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CF
Insiders 0.4%Institutions 106.6%
No. of Institutional Holders1,170
High insider ownership aligns management incentives with shareholders — a key signal in Buffett-style analysis. Institutional concentration can indicate smart-money conviction but also crowding risk.
UNH
Insiders 0.8%Institutions 84.2%Retail & Other 14.9%
No. of Institutional Holders4,244
High insider ownership aligns management incentives with shareholders — a key signal in Buffett-style analysis. Institutional concentration can indicate smart-money conviction but also crowding risk.

High insider ownership aligns management incentives with shareholders. Institutional concentration can indicate smart-money conviction but also crowding risk.

Insider Buying Activity

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CF
0
Buys (3M)
0
Buys (12M)
No open market insider purchases found.
Open market purchases · includes direct & indirect ownership · excludes option exercises
UNH
0
Buys (3M)
5
Buys (12M)
Total value (12M): $31.61M
REX JOHN F
President
$5.00M
@ $291.12 · 2025-05-16
HEMSLEY STEPHEN J
Chief Executive Officer
$25.02M
@ $288.57 · 2025-05-16
GIL KRISTEN
Director
$1.00M
@ $271.17 · 2025-05-15
FLYNN TIMOTHY PATRICK
Director
$491,786
@ $320.80 · 2025-05-14
NOSEWORTHY JOHN H
Director
$93,647
@ $312.16 · 2025-05-14
FLYNN TIMOTHY PATRICK
Director
$511,575
@ $511.57 · 2025-01-17
Open market purchases · includes direct & indirect ownership · excludes option exercises

Open market purchases · includes direct & indirect ownership · excludes option exercises.

Insider Selling Activity

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CF
20
Sells (3M)
23
Sells (12M)
Total value (12M): $73.69M
WILL W ANTHONY
Director
$10.33M
@ $126.56 · 2026-03-13
MENZEL SUSAN L
Officer
$2.45M
@ $136.06 · 2026-03-12
FROST BERT A
Officer
$854,316
@ $136.69 · 2026-03-12
FROST BERT A
Officer
$1.83M
@ $118.01 · 2026-03-09
MCGRANE MICHAEL PATRICK
General Counsel
$427,089
@ $116.50 · 2026-03-06
MAYER ERIK M.
Officer
$255,749
@ $116.25 · 2026-03-06
WILL W ANTHONY
Director
$6.27M
@ $109.35 · 2026-03-05
MENZEL SUSAN L
Officer
$799,200
@ $111.00 · 2026-03-05
MALIK ASHRAF KHAN
Officer
$270,729
@ $111.00 · 2026-03-05
DEMPSEY LINDA M
Officer
$213,000
@ $106.50 · 2026-03-05
WILL W ANTHONY
Director
$7.01M
@ $109.06 · 2026-03-03
MENZEL SUSAN L
Officer
$415,250
@ $106.09 · 2026-03-03
MCGRANE MICHAEL PATRICK
General Counsel
$291,426
@ $105.36 · 2026-03-03
WILL W ANTHONY
Former
$24.37M
@ $102.63 · 2026-03-02
MENZEL SUSAN L
Officer
$713,232
@ $104.00 · 2026-03-02
FROST BERT A
Officer
$540,761
@ $105.99 · 2026-03-02
MALIK ASHRAF KHAN
Officer
$889,696
@ $103.08 · 2026-03-02
DEMPSEY LINDA M
Officer
$100,000
@ $100.00 · 2026-02-27
MENZEL SUSAN L
Officer
$311,859
@ $97.00 · 2026-02-26
WILL W ANTHONY
Director
$11.22M
@ $100.25 · 2026-02-20
MENZEL SUSAN L
Officer
$1.00M
@ $100.23 · 2025-06-20
FROST BERT A
Officer
$2.57M
@ $98.79 · 2025-06-16
MALIK ASHRAF KHAN
Officer
$549,535
@ $99.95 · 2025-06-13
MENZEL SUSAN L
Officer
$276,300
@ $96.95 · 2025-01-16
MENZEL SUSAN L
Officer
$142,500
@ $95.00 · 2025-01-13
FROST BERT A
Officer
$285,000
@ $95.00 · 2025-01-13
MALIK ASHRAF KHAN
Officer
$844,457
@ $95.00 · 2025-01-13
MENZEL SUSAN L
Officer
$325,000
@ $92.86 · 2024-12-03
MALIK ASHRAF KHAN
Officer
$635,487
@ $90.78 · 2024-11-21
FROST BERT A
Officer
$264,000
@ $88.00 · 2024-11-20
MENZEL SUSAN L
Officer
$180,000
@ $90.00 · 2024-10-04
FROST BERT A
Officer
$270,000
@ $90.00 · 2024-10-04
MALIK ASHRAF KHAN
Officer
$648,269
@ $90.02 · 2024-10-04
Direct ownership only · excludes indirect, option exercises, planned (10b5-1) sales & derivatives
UNH
0
Sells (3M)
1
Sells (12M)
Total value (12M): $179,645
CONWAY PATRICK HUGH M.D.
Chief Executive Officer
$179,645
@ $305.00 · 2025-06-10
MCSWEENEY ERIN L
Officer
$438,987
@ $626.23 · 2024-11-11
Direct ownership only · excludes indirect, option exercises, planned (10b5-1) sales & derivatives

Direct ownership only · excludes indirect, option exercises, planned (10b5-1) sales & derivatives.

🎭 Mr. Market's Mood

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CF
FearGreed
😐Neutral(53/100)

"Market is pricing this stock without strong emotion in either direction"

Composite sentiment score based on 6 market signals. Inspired by Buffett's "Mr. Market" allegory — fear = potential opportunity, greed = potential risk. Must be used alongside fundamental analysis, not in isolation.
UNH
FearGreed
😨Fear(37/100)

"Market is pessimistic — investigate whether fears are temporary or structural"

Composite sentiment score based on 6 market signals. Inspired by Buffett's "Mr. Market" allegory — fear = potential opportunity, greed = potential risk. Must be used alongside fundamental analysis, not in isolation.

Composite sentiment score based on market signals. Inspired by Buffett’s "Mr. Market" allegory — fear = potential opportunity, greed = potential risk. Must be used alongside fundamental analysis, not in isolation.

⚖️ Buffett Signal

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CF
⚪Awaiting DCF Data

The Buffett Signal cross-references market sentiment with DCF valuation. Configure the DCF Analysis above to generate a signal.

DCF Margin of Safety: N/AMr. Market's Mood: Neutral (53)
UNH
⚪Awaiting DCF Data

The Buffett Signal cross-references market sentiment with DCF valuation. Configure the DCF Analysis above to generate a signal.

DCF Margin of Safety: N/AMr. Market's Mood: Fear (37)
View CF Full AnalysisView UNH Full Analysis
CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (CF) vs UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (UNH) Stock Comparison | SafetyMargin.io