Compare StocksDOW vs UNH

Dow Inc. (DOW) vs UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (UNH)

DOW
Dow Inc.
$40.29
VS
UNH
UnitedHealth Group Incorporated
$368.78

Rewards

DOW
    UNH
    • Dividend yield of 2.40% with a consistent or growing payout over the past 4 years.

    Risks

    DOW
    • ROIC has declined by 11.7 percentage points over the observed period, which may signal competitive erosion.
    • Gross margin of 6.3% is low, suggesting a competitive or commodity-like market with limited pricing power.
    • Dow Inc. scores only 22/100 on the Economic Moat Score, suggesting limited durable competitive advantages.
    UNH
    • ROIC has declined by 7.9 percentage points over the observed period, which may signal competitive erosion.
    • Gross margin of 18.8% is low, suggesting a competitive or commodity-like market with limited pricing power.
    • FCF yield of 5.3% suggests reasonable valuation assuming continued moderate growth.

    Key Valuation Metrics

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    DOW
    UNH
    Valuation
    $-675.88M
    Free Cash Flow
    $17.69B
    -2.33%
    FCF Yield
    5.28%
    N/A
    Trailing P/E
    27.85
    19.47
    Forward P/E
    17.77
    Quality & Moat
    0.01%
    ROIC
    15.60%
    -15.65%
    ROE
    11.45%
    6.25%
    Gross Margin
    18.80%
    38.89
    PEG Ratio
    39.79
    Balance Sheet Safety
    1.17
    Debt / Equity
    0.74
    N/A
    Interest Coverage
    N/A
    5.79
    Net Debt / EBITDA
    2.18
    3.47%
    Dividend Yield
    2.40%
    DOW: 1Ties: 2UNH: 8
    DOWUNH

    Historical Fundamentals

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    DOW

    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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    DOW
    N/A
    Net losses over 3 years — test not applicable
    Company had negative cumulative retained earnings
    Σ Retained
    $-6.35B
    Δ Market Cap
    $-18.75B
    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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    DOW
    Insufficient Data
    Enter initial FCF to calculate intrinsic value
    Current Price: $40.29
    Fair Value: $0.00
    Strongly undervalued
    Undervalued
    Fairly valued
    Overvalued
    Strongly overvalued
    UNH
    9.6% Overvalued
    Price is 9.6% above estimated fair value
    Current Price: $368.78
    Fair Value: $336.33
    Strongly undervalued
    Undervalued
    Fairly valued
    Overvalued
    Strongly overvalued

    Reverse DCF — Market-Implied Growth

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    DOW

    Requires positive FCF to compute implied growth rate.

    UNH

    What growth rate is the market pricing in at $369?

    +13.9%
    Market-Implied Owner Earnings Growth
    Standard FCF implies +8.7%

    The market implies +13.9% Owner Earnings growth, above historical trends.

    Standard FCF implies a demanding +8.7%, reflecting heavy growth investment.

    Economic Moat Score

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    DOW
    22/100
    No Moat
    70+ Wide · 40-69 Narrow · <40 None

    No durable moat detected, though reinvestment efficiency shows some competitive positioning. The business lacks consistent evidence of sustainable advantages.

    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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    DOW
    -2.44
    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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    DOW
    Insiders 0.2%Institutions 69.9%Retail & Other 29.9%
    No. of Institutional Holders1,549
    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 84.7%Retail & Other 14.5%
    No. of Institutional Holders4,077
    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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    DOW
    0
    Buys (3M)
    0
    Buys (12M)
    DIAL DEBRA L
    Director
    $26,197
    @ $38.81 · 2025-02-07
    BANISTER GAURDIE E JR.
    Director
    $299,932
    @ $40.87 · 2024-12-13
    FITTERLING JAMES R
    Chief Executive Officer
    $1.06M
    @ $41.49 · 2024-12-12
    DAVIS RICHARD K
    Director
    $249,730
    @ $41.45 · 2024-12-12
    Open market purchases · includes direct & indirect ownership · excludes option exercises
    UNH
    0
    Buys (3M)
    5
    Buys (12M)
    Total value (12M): $31.61M
    HEMSLEY STEPHEN J
    Chief Executive Officer
    $25.02M
    @ $288.57 · 2025-05-16
    REX JOHN F
    President
    $5.00M
    @ $291.12 · 2025-05-16
    GIL KRISTEN
    Director
    $1.00M
    @ $271.17 · 2025-05-15
    NOSEWORTHY JOHN H
    Director
    $93,647
    @ $312.16 · 2025-05-14
    FLYNN TIMOTHY PATRICK
    Director
    $491,786
    @ $320.80 · 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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    DOW
    0
    Sells (3M)
    0
    Sells (12M)
    No open market insider sales found.
    Direct ownership only · excludes indirect, option exercises, planned (10b5-1) sales & derivatives
    UNH
    1
    Sells (3M)
    2
    Sells (12M)
    Total value (12M): $463,645
    CONWAY PATRICK HUGH M.D.
    Officer
    $284,000
    @ $355.00 · 2026-04-23
    CONWAY PATRICK HUGH M.D.
    Chief Executive Officer
    $179,645
    @ $305.00 · 2025-06-10
    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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    DOW
    FearGreed
    😐Neutral(58/100)

    "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
    😏Greed(65/100)

    "Market is optimistic — be cautious and ensure you have a margin of safety"

    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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    DOW
    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 (58)
    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: Greed (65)
    View DOW Full AnalysisView UNH Full Analysis
    DOW vs UNH: Which Is the Better Buy? | SafetyMargin.io