Compare StocksCOP vs UNH

ConocoPhillips (COP) vs UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (UNH)

COP
ConocoPhillips
$126.02
VS
UNH
UnitedHealth Group Incorporated
$280.44

Rewards

COP
  • ConocoPhillips has maintained ROIC above 10% for 4 consecutive years, suggesting solid business economics.
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

COP
  • Trailing P/E of 19.8x is 65% above the historical average of 12.1x — the stock trades at a premium to its own history.
  • 7 insider sales totaling $14.6M with no purchases in the past 3 months — insiders are reducing their exposure.
  • Free cash flow has declined at a 26.4% 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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COP
UNH
Valuation
$7.49B
Free Cash Flow
$13.86B
4.86%
FCF Yield
5.45%
19.85
Trailing P/E
21.18
18.53
Forward P/E
14.08
Quality & Moat
8.73%
ROIC
0.64%
12.39%
ROE
11.85%
46.18%
Gross Margin
18.53%
N/A
PEG Ratio
N/A
Balance Sheet Safety
0.38
Debt / Equity
0.82
N/A
Interest Coverage
N/A
0.72
Net Debt / EBITDA
2.54
2.67%
Dividend Yield
3.15%
COP: 5Ties: 2UNH: 4
COPUNH

Historical Fundamentals

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COP

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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COP
$-1.99
created per $1 retained over 3 years
Market Cap Declined
Σ Retained
$14.97B
Δ Market Cap
$-29.73B
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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COP
60.3% Margin of Safety
Price is 60.3% below estimated fair value
Current Price: $126.02
Fair Value: $317.70
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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COP

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

+8.7%
Market-Implied Owner Earnings Growth
Standard FCF implies +9.6%

The market implies +8.7% Owner Earnings growth, above historical trends.

Standard FCF implies a demanding +9.6%, 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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COP
46/100
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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COP
-2.89
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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COP
Insiders 0.1%Institutions 84.9%Retail & Other 15.0%
No. of Institutional Holders2,909
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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COP
0
Buys (3M)
2
Buys (12M)
Total value (12M): $999,472
MCRAVEN WILLIAM H.
Director
$500,000
@ $86.69 · 2025-11-10
JOHNSON KIRK L
Officer
$499,472
@ $94.24 · 2025-06-16
MURTI ARJUN N
Director
$239,675
@ $95.87 · 2024-12-20
WALKER R A
Director
$1.02M
@ $97.80 · 2024-12-17
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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COP
7
Sells (3M)
8
Sells (12M)
Total value (12M): $60.91M
HRAP HEATHER G.
Officer
$317,631
@ $119.68 · 2026-03-13
LUNDQUIST ANDREW D
Officer
$4.13M
@ $119.68 · 2026-03-13
OLDS NICHOLAS G
Officer
$1.73M
@ $119.36 · 2026-03-12
HAYNES-WELSH KONTESSA S.
Officer
$1.24M
@ $120.07 · 2026-03-12
OLDS NICHOLAS G
Officer
$1.41M
@ $116.37 · 2026-03-11
ROSE KELLY BRUNETTI
General Counsel
$1.00M
@ $118.04 · 2026-03-09
LEACH TIMOTHY ALLEN
Director
$4.75M
@ $118.79 · 2026-03-06
LANCE RYAN MICHAEL
Chief Executive Officer
$46.32M
@ $92.50 · 2025-12-19
LEACH TIMOTHY ALLEN
Director
$6.00M
@ $108.11 · 2024-08-13
OLDS NICHOLAS G
Officer
$1.54M
@ $126.44 · 2024-03-25
LANCE RYAN MICHAEL
Chief Executive Officer
$76.43M
@ $125.91 · 2024-03-25
BULLOCK WILLIAM L JR
Chief Financial Officer
$5.57M
@ $123.32 · 2024-03-22
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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COP
FearGreed
😏Greed(73/100)

"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.
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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COP
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 (73)
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 COP Full AnalysisView UNH Full Analysis
ConocoPhillips (COP) vs UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (UNH) Stock Comparison | SafetyMargin.io