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UNH (UnitedHealth Group) Beneish M-Score : -2.26 (As of Jul. 01, 2025)


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What is UnitedHealth Group Beneish M-Score?

The zones of discrimination for M-Score is as such:

An M-Score of equal or less than -1.78 suggests that the company is unlikely to be a manipulator.
An M-Score of greater than -1.78 signals that the company is likely to be a manipulator.

Good Sign:

Beneish M-Score -2.26 no higher than -1.78, which implies that the company is unlikely to be a manipulator.

The historical rank and industry rank for UnitedHealth Group's Beneish M-Score or its related term are showing as below:

UNH' s Beneish M-Score Range Over the Past 10 Years
Min: -2.81   Med: -2.47   Max: -1.71
Current: -2.26

During the past 13 years, the highest Beneish M-Score of UnitedHealth Group was -1.71. The lowest was -2.81. And the median was -2.47.


UnitedHealth Group Beneish M-Score Historical Data

The historical data trend for UnitedHealth Group's Beneish M-Score can be seen below:

* For Operating Data section: All numbers are indicated by the unit behind each term and all currency related amount are in USD.
* For other sections: All numbers are in millions except for per share data, ratio, and percentage. All currency related amount are indicated in the company's associated stock exchange currency.

* Premium members only.

UnitedHealth Group Beneish M-Score Chart

UnitedHealth Group Annual Data
Trend Dec15 Dec16 Dec17 Dec18 Dec19 Dec20 Dec21 Dec22 Dec23 Dec24
Beneish M-Score
Get a 7-Day Free Trial Premium Member Only Premium Member Only -1.71 -2.47 -2.52 -2.36 -2.26

UnitedHealth Group Quarterly Data
Jun20 Sep20 Dec20 Mar21 Jun21 Sep21 Dec21 Mar22 Jun22 Sep22 Dec22 Mar23 Jun23 Sep23 Dec23 Mar24 Jun24 Sep24 Dec24 Mar25
Beneish M-Score Get a 7-Day Free Trial Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only - - - -2.26 -

Competitive Comparison of UnitedHealth Group's Beneish M-Score

For the Healthcare Plans subindustry, UnitedHealth Group's Beneish M-Score, along with its competitors' market caps and Beneish M-Score data, can be viewed below:

* Competitive companies are chosen from companies within the same industry, with headquarter located in same country, with closest market capitalization; x-axis shows the market cap, and y-axis shows the term value; the bigger the dot, the larger the market cap. Note that "N/A" values will not show up in the chart.


UnitedHealth Group's Beneish M-Score Distribution in the Healthcare Plans Industry

For the Healthcare Plans industry and Healthcare sector, UnitedHealth Group's Beneish M-Score distribution charts can be found below:

* The bar in red indicates where UnitedHealth Group's Beneish M-Score falls into.


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UnitedHealth Group Beneish M-Score Calculation

The M-score was created by Professor Messod Beneish. Instead of measuring the bankruptcy risk (Altman Z-Score) or business trend (Piotroski F-Score), M-score can be used to detect the risk of earnings manipulation. This is the original research paper on M-score.

The M-Score Variables:

The M-score of UnitedHealth Group for today is based on a combination of the following eight different indices:

M=-4.84+0.92 * DSRI+0.528 * GMI+0.404 * AQI+0.892 * SGI+0.115 * DEPI
=-4.84+0.92 * 1.1544+0.528 * 1.0959+0.404 * 1.0081+0.892 * 1.0771+0.115 * 0.9206
-0.172 * SGAI+4.679 * TATA-0.327 * LVGI
-0.172 * 1+4.679 * -0.004992-0.327 * 1.0274
=-2.26

* For Operating Data section: All numbers are indicated by the unit behind each term and all currency related amount are in USD.
* For other sections: All numbers are in millions except for per share data, ratio, and percentage. All currency related amount are indicated in the company's associated stock exchange currency.

This Year (Dec24) TTM:Last Year (Dec23) TTM:
Total Receivables was $48,454 Mil.
Revenue was $400,278 Mil.
Gross Profit was $89,399 Mil.
Total Current Assets was $85,779 Mil.
Total Assets was $298,278 Mil.
Property, Plant and Equipment(Net PPE) was $10,553 Mil.
Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization(DDA) was $4,099 Mil.
Selling, General, & Admin. Expense(SGA) was $0 Mil.
Total Current Liabilities was $103,769 Mil.
Long-Term Debt & Capital Lease Obligation was $72,359 Mil.
Net Income was $14,405 Mil.
Gross Profit was $-8,310 Mil.
Cash Flow from Operations was $24,204 Mil.
Total Receivables was $38,970 Mil.
Revenue was $371,622 Mil.
Gross Profit was $90,958 Mil.
Total Current Assets was $78,437 Mil.
Total Assets was $273,720 Mil.
Property, Plant and Equipment(Net PPE) was $11,450 Mil.
Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization(DDA) was $3,972 Mil.
Selling, General, & Admin. Expense(SGA) was $0 Mil.
Total Current Liabilities was $99,054 Mil.
Long-Term Debt & Capital Lease Obligation was $58,263 Mil.




1. DSRI = Days Sales in Receivables Index

Measured as the ratio of Revenue in Total Receivables in year t to year t-1.

A large increase in DSR could be indicative of revenue inflation.

DSRI=(Receivables_t / Revenue_t) / (Receivables_t-1 / Revenue_t-1)
=(48454 / 400278) / (38970 / 371622)
=0.121051 / 0.104865
=1.1544

2. GMI = Gross Margin Index

Measured as the ratio of gross margin in year t-1 to gross margin in year t.

Gross margin has deteriorated when this index is above 1. A firm with poorer prospects is more likely to manipulate earnings.

GMI=GrossMargin_t-1 / GrossMargin_t
=(GrossProfit_t-1 / Revenue_t-1) / (GrossProfit_t / Revenue_t)
=(90958 / 371622) / (89399 / 400278)
=0.244759 / 0.223342
=1.0959

3. AQI = Asset Quality Index

AQI is the ratio of asset quality in year t to year t-1.

Asset quality is measured as the ratio of non-current assets other than Property, Plant and Equipment to Total Assets.

AQI=(1 - (CurrentAssets_t + PPE_t) / TotalAssets_t) / (1 - (CurrentAssets_t-1 + PPE_t-1) / TotalAssets_t-1)
=(1 - (85779 + 10553) / 298278) / (1 - (78437 + 11450) / 273720)
=0.67704 / 0.67161
=1.0081

4. SGI = Sales Growth Index

Ratio of Revenue in year t to sales in year t-1.

Sales growth is not itself a measure of manipulation. However, growth companies are likely to find themselves under pressure to manipulate in order to keep up appearances.

SGI=Sales_t / Sales_t-1
=Revenue_t / Revenue_t-1
=400278 / 371622
=1.0771

5. DEPI = Depreciation Index

Measured as the ratio of the rate of Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization in year t-1 to the corresponding rate in year t.

DEPI greater than 1 indicates that assets are being depreciated at a slower rate. This suggests that the firm might be revising useful asset life assumptions upwards, or adopting a new method that is income friendly.

DEPI=(Depreciation_t-1 / (Depreciaton_t-1 + PPE_t-1)) / (Depreciation_t / (Depreciaton_t + PPE_t))
=(3972 / (3972 + 11450)) / (4099 / (4099 + 10553))
=0.257554 / 0.279757
=0.9206

Note: If the Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization data is not available, we assume that the depreciation rate is constant and set the Depreciation Index to 1.

6. SGAI = Sales, General and Administrative expenses Index

The ratio of Selling, General, & Admin. Expense(SGA) to Sales in year t relative to year t-1.

SGA expenses index > 1 means that the company is becoming less efficient in generate sales.

SGAI=(SGA_t / Sales_t) / (SGA_t-1 /Sales_t-1)
=(0 / 400278) / (0 / 371622)
=0 / 0
=1

7. LVGI = Leverage Index

The ratio of total debt to Total Assets in year t relative to yeat t-1.

An LVGI > 1 indicates an increase in leverage

LVGI=((LTD_t + CurrentLiabilities_t) / TotalAssets_t) / ((LTD_t-1 + CurrentLiabilities_t-1) / TotalAssets_t-1)
=((72359 + 103769) / 298278) / ((58263 + 99054) / 273720)
=0.590483 / 0.574737
=1.0274

8. TATA = Total Accruals to Total Assets

Total accruals calculated as the change in working capital accounts other than cash less depreciation.

TATA=(IncomefromContinuingOperations_t - CashFlowsfromOperations_t) / TotalAssets_t
=(NetIncome_t - NonOperatingIncome_t - CashFlowsfromOperations_t) / TotalAssets_t
=(14405 - -8310 - 24204) / 298278
=-0.004992

An M-Score of equal or less than -1.78 suggests that the company is unlikely to be a manipulator. An M-Score of greater than -1.78 signals that the company is likely to be a manipulator.

UnitedHealth Group has a M-score of -2.26 suggests that the company is unlikely to be a manipulator.


UnitedHealth Group Beneish M-Score Related Terms

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UnitedHealth Group Business Description

Address
1 Health Drive, Eden Prairie, MN, USA, 55344
UnitedHealth Group is one of the largest private health insurers and provides medical benefits to about 51 million members globally, including 1 million outside the US as of December 2024. As a leader in employer-sponsored, self-directed, and government-backed insurance plans, UnitedHealth has obtained massive scale in medical insurance. Along with its insurance assets, UnitedHealth's Optum franchises help create a healthcare services colossus that spans everything from pharmaceutical benefits to providing outpatient care and analytics to both affiliated and third-party customers.
Executives
John F Rex officer: EVP Chief Financial Officer C/O UNITEDHEALTH GROUP, 9900 BREN ROAD EAST, MN008-T502, MINNETONKA MN 55343
Stephen J Hemsley director, officer: Pres & COO, UnitedHealth Grp 200 WASHINGTON AVE N, SUITE 200, MINNEAPOLIS MN 55401
Kristen Gil director C/O UNITEDHEALTH GROUP, 9900 BREN ROAD EAST, MN008-T502, MINNETONKA MN 55343
Timothy Patrick Flynn director JPMORGAN CHASE & CO., 270 PARK AVENUE, NEW YORK NY 10017
John H Noseworthy director C/O UNITEDHEALTH GROUP, 9900 BREN ROAD EAST, MN008-T502, MINNETONKA MN 55343
Erin Mcsweeney officer: EVP Chief People Officer EMC CORPORATION, 176 SOUTH STREET, HOPKINTON MA 01748
Thomas E Roos officer: Chief Accounting Officer C/O UNITEDHEALTH GROUP, 9900 BREN ROAD EAST, MN008-T502, MINNETONKA MN 55343
Andrew Witty director, officer: CEO, UHG C/O UNITEDHEALTH GROUP, 9900 BREN ROAD EAST, MN008-T502, MINNETONKA MN 55343
Charles D. Baker director 311 ARSENAL STREET, WATERTOWN MA 02472
Dirk C Mcmahon officer: President & CEO, UHC C/O UNITEDHEALTH GROUP, 9900 BREN ROAD EAST, MN008-T502, MINNETONKA MN 55343
Mcnabb Frederick William Iii director C/O UNITEDHEALTH GROUP, 9900 BREN ROAD EAST, MN008-T502, MINNETONKA MN 55343
Richard T Burke director 3962 TOMAHAWK TRAIL, MEDINA MN 55340
Rupert M Bondy officer: EVP & Chief Legal Officer C/O UNITEDHEALTH GROUP, 9900 BREN ROAD EAST, MN008-T502, MINNETONKA MN 55343
Paul R Garcia director 214 N TRYON STREET, CHARLOTTE NC 28202
Brian R Thompson officer: CEO, UnitedHealthcare C/O UNITEDHEALTH GROUP, 9900 BREN ROAD EAST, MN008-T502, MINNETONKA MN 55343