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KKR & Co. Inc. (KKR) vs UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (UNH): Which Is the Better Buy in 2026?

As of 2026-11-01, KKR is overvalued at $94, with a DCF intrinsic value of $0 and a margin of safety of -100%. UNH is overvalued at $407, with an intrinsic value of $367 and a margin of safety of -11%. Of the two, UNH has the wider margin of safety.

KKR
KKR & Co. Inc.
$94.39
VS
UNH
UnitedHealth Group Incorporated
$406.97

Rewards

KKR
  • ★Each dollar of retained earnings has created $8.79 of earning power — management is an exceptional capital allocator.
  • ★8 insider purchases over the past 12 months with a buy/sell ratio above 3:1 — a sustained pattern of insider confidence.
  • ★PEG ratio of 0.40 suggests the stock is undervalued relative to its growth rate — paying less than 1x for each unit of earnings growth.
UNH
  • ★UnitedHealth Group Incorporated scores 73/100 on the Economic Moat Score (Wide Moat), with revenue predictability as the strongest competitive dimension.

Risks

KKR
  • ⚠KKR & Co. Inc. scores only 24/100 on the Economic Moat Score, suggesting limited durable competitive advantages.
  • ⚠Despite buyback spending, shares outstanding increased in 2 out of 3 years — stock-based compensation is offsetting repurchases.
  • ⚠Altman Z-Score of 0.85 places the company in the distress zone — financial patterns resemble those of companies that experienced bankruptcy.
UNH
  • ⚠ROIC has declined by 6.9 percentage points over the past 4 years, which may signal competitive erosion.
  • ⚠Gross margin of 20.0% is low, suggesting a competitive or commodity-like market with limited pricing power.
  • ⚠FCF yield of 7.3% suggests reasonable valuation assuming continued moderate growth.

Key Valuation Metrics

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KKR
UNH
Valuation
N/A
Free Cash Flow
$26.50B
N/A
FCF Yield
7.25%
30.16
Trailing P/E
23.23
13.13
Forward P/E
17.48
Quality & Moat
3.08%
ROIC
11.51%
7.28%
ROE
15.77%
54.77%
Gross Margin
20.05%
0.40
PEG Ratio
1.03
Balance Sheet Safety
0.11
Net Debt / Equity
0.43
N/A
Interest Coverage
N/A
N/A
Net Debt / EBITDA
1.58
0.83%
Dividend Yield
2.28%
KKR: 4Ties: 1UNH: 4
KKRUNH

Historical Fundamentals

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KKR

Price ÷ Earnings Per Share — how many years of current earnings you're paying for at today's price. Lower P/E may indicate undervaluation. The dashed forward point is the forward P/E — today's price ÷ analyst consensus EPS.

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. The dashed forward point is the forward P/E — today's price ÷ analyst consensus EPS.

Price ÷ Earnings Per Share — how many years of current earnings you're paying for at today's price. Lower P/E may indicate undervaluation. The dashed forward point is the forward P/E — today's price ÷ analyst consensus EPS.

$1 Retained Earnings Test

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KKR
$10.26
created per $1 retained over 3 years
Exceptional Value Creator
Σ Retained
$7.18B
Δ Market Cap
+$73.67B
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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KKR
Insufficient Data
Enter initial FCF to calculate intrinsic value
Current Price: $94.39
Fair Value: $0.00
Strongly undervalued
Undervalued
Fairly valued
Overvalued
Strongly overvalued
UNH
10.8% Overvalued
Price is 10.8% above estimated fair value
Current Price: $406.97
Fair Value: $367.30
Strongly undervalued
Undervalued
Fairly valued
Overvalued
Strongly overvalued

Reverse DCF — Market-Implied Growth

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KKR

Requires positive FCF to compute implied growth rate.

UNH

What growth rate is the market pricing in at $407?

+14.2%
Market-Implied Owner Earnings Growth
Standard FCF implies +4.2%

The market implies +14.2% Owner Earnings growth, above historical trends.

Standard FCF implies a demanding +4.2%, reflecting heavy growth investment.

Economic Moat Score

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KKR
24/100
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
73/100
Wide Moat
70+ Wide · 40-69 Narrow · <40 None

Wide moat driven primarily by revenue predictability. Margin Stability is the area most vulnerable to competitive pressure.

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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KKR
-2.50
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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KKR
Insiders 23.0%Institutions 62.3%Retail & Other 14.7%
No. of Institutional Holders1,732
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 0.2%Institutions 89.6%Retail & Other 10.1%
No. of Institutional Holders4,333
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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KKR
0
Buys (3M)
8
Buys (12M)
Total value (12M): $50.93M
BARAKETT TIMOTHY R.
Director
$4.72M
@ $94.47 · 2026-03-04
DILLON MARY N
Director
$2.02M
@ $90.96 · 2026-03-02
BAE JOSEPH Y
Chief Executive Officer
$4.43M
@ $88.56 · 2026-02-27
NUTTALL SCOTT C
Chief Executive Officer
$4.39M
@ $87.81 · 2026-02-27
BAE JOSEPH Y
Chief Executive Officer
$12.77M
@ $102.19 · 2026-02-17
NUTTALL SCOTT C
Chief Executive Officer
$12.83M
@ $102.66 · 2026-02-17
COHLER MATTHEW R
Director
$4.51M
@ $102.90 · 2026-02-17
BARAKETT TIMOTHY R.
Director
$5.25M
@ $104.93 · 2026-02-09
BARAKETT TIMOTHY R.
Director
$4.13M
@ $117.92 · 2025-05-22
SCULLY ROBERT W
Director
$1.50M
@ $113.49 · 2025-05-06
Open market purchases · includes direct & indirect ownership · excludes option exercises
UNH
0
Buys (3M)
0
Buys (12M)
No open market insider purchases found.
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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KKR
1
Sells (3M)
1
Sells (12M)
Total value (12M): $1.09M
HOLMES DANE E
Officer
$1.09M
@ $108.58 · 2026-09-03
Direct ownership only · excludes indirect, option exercises, planned (10b5-1) sales & derivatives
UNH
2
Sells (3M)
3
Sells (12M)
Total value (12M): $944,910
CONWAY PATRICK HUGH
Officer
$455,910
@ $390.00 · 2026-08-21
CONWAY PATRICK HUGH
Officer
$205,000
@ $410.00 · 2026-08-05
CONWAY PATRICK HUGH
Officer
$284,000
@ $355.00 · 2026-04-23
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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KKR
FearGreed
😨Fear(40/100)

"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.
UNH
FearGreed
😏Greed(62/100)

"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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KKR
⚪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 (40)
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 (62)
View KKR Full AnalysisView UNH Full Analysis

Frequently Asked Questions: KKR vs UNH

Is KKR & Co. Inc. or UnitedHealth Group Incorporated more undervalued in 2026?▼

Based on our discounted cash flow model, UNH trades at a -10.8% margin of safety (intrinsic value $367 vs. price $407), compared to KKR's -100.0% margin of safety (intrinsic $0 vs. $94).

Which stock has a wider economic moat, KKR & Co. Inc. or UnitedHealth Group Incorporated?▼

UNH scores 73/100 (Wide moat), while KKR scores 24/100 (None moat). The moat score measures competitive advantage durability across ROIC consistency, margin stability, revenue predictability, and reinvestment efficiency.

Is KKR & Co. Inc. in financial distress?▼

KKR's Altman Z-Score of 0.8 places it in the Distress zone, signaling elevated bankruptcy risk. UNH scores 2.9 (Grey zone). The Altman Z-Score is a five-factor model that predicts insolvency within two years; scores below 1.81 indicate significant distress.

Which stock has higher return on invested capital, KKR & Co. Inc. or UnitedHealth Group Incorporated?▼

UNH earns 11.5% ROIC versus KKR's 3.1%. A higher ROIC means the company generates more profit per dollar of capital employed, a hallmark of durable competitive advantage in Buffett-style analysis.

Which dividend is safer, KKR & Co. Inc.'s or UnitedHealth Group Incorporated's?▼

UNH's dividend earns a safety score of 84/100 (Very Safe), compared to KKR's 58/100 (Borderline). UNH has raised its dividend for 3 consecutive years.

KKR vs UNH: Which Is the Better Buy in 2026? | SafetyMargin.io