CVS HEALTH vs Unitedhealth Group (CVS vs UNH)
Side by side from their SEC filings: revenue, margins, growth, returns and valuation, plus short interest, insider activity and institutional ownership.
Unitedhealth Group is the larger company by revenue ($447.6B vs $402.1B) and market value ($355.7B vs $124.8B). Unitedhealth Group has grown revenue faster over the last 4 fiscal years (+55.6% cumulative vs +37.6%). Unitedhealth Group runs the higher operating margin (4.2% vs 1.2%). CVS HEALTH trades at the lower trailing P/E (24.8x vs 25.4x).
About CVS HEALTH
CVS Health Corporation operates as a health solutions company with approximately 9,000 retail locations, over 1,000 medical clinics, and a pharmacy benefits manager serving about 87 million plan members. It provides health insurance products and related services to more than 37 million people, including traditional, voluntary, and consumer-directed plans, Medicare Advantage, Medicare Part D prescription drug plans, and Medicaid management services. The company serves individuals, employer groups, and government-sponsored plans through its four segments: Health Care Benefits, Health Services, Pharmacy & Consumer Wellness, and Corporate/Other.
About Unitedhealth Group
UnitedHealth Group is a health care and well-being company operating through two main businesses: Optum and UnitedHealthcare. Optum provides information and technology-enabled health services including patient care, data analytics, and pharmacy care services to patients, care providers, payers, employers, governments, and life sciences companies. UnitedHealthcare offers health benefits to individuals, employers, seniors, and economically disadvantaged populations to simplify access to affordable, high-quality care.
Head to head (CVS FY2025 vs UNH FY2025)
| Metric | CVSFY2025 | UNHFY2025 |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $402.07B | $447.57B |
| Revenue growth (YoY) | 7.8% | 11.8% |
| Gross margin | — | — |
| Operating margin | 1.2% | 4.2% |
| Net margin | 0.4% | 2.7% |
| Net income | $1.77B | $12.06B |
| Diluted EPS | $1.39 | $13.23 |
| FCF margin | 1.9% | 3.6% |
| ROE | 2.3% | 12.0% |
| Long-term debt / equity | 0.80× | 0.72× |
| Market cap | $124.83B | $355.72B |
| P/E | 24.8× | 25.4× |
Fundamentals are from each company’s SEC filings (CVS FY2025, UNH FY2025). ROE is net income over fiscal-year-end equity; long-term debt / equity counts non-current term debt only. P/E and market cap are derived from stored market prices, last retrieved on a rolling basis and typically within the past week.
Five-year trend (as reported)
| Revenue | FY2021 | FY2022 | FY2023 | FY2024 | FY2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVS | $292.11B | $322.47B | $357.78B | $372.81B | $402.07B |
| UNH | $287.60B | $324.16B | $371.62B | $400.28B | $447.57B |
Peer standing
Where each company ranks among the 558 Healthcare companies, on the same scale. Each figure is ranked only against peers that report it. Percentiles describe position in the distribution, not a rating.
| Metric | CVS | UNH |
|---|---|---|
| Operating margin | 1.2%51st percentile of 399 | 4.2%58th percentile of 399 |
| Net margin | 0.4%53rd percentile of 418 | 2.7%59th percentile of 418 |
| FCF margin | 1.9%45th percentile of 372 | 3.6%51st percentile of 372 |
| Revenue growth (YoY) | +7.8%45th percentile of 538 | +11.8%55th percentile of 538 |
| ROE | 2.3%64th percentile of 473 | 12.0%77th percentile of 473 |
| P/E | 24.8×52nd percentile of 201 | 25.4×53rd percentile of 201 |
| Long-term debt / equity | 0.80×71st percentile of 243 | 0.72×66th percentile of 243 |
| Short interest (days to cover) | 1.80d17th percentile of 557 | 3.84d44th percentile of 557 |
Short interest
| FINRA settlement data | CVS | UNH |
|---|---|---|
| Shares sold short | 16.8M | 15.5M |
| Change vs prior settlement | -9.9% | +2.5% |
| Days to cover | 1.80 | 3.84 |
| As of settlement | 2026-08-14 | 2026-08-14 |
Source: FINRA Consolidated Short Interest. FINRA is the owner and source of the FINRA-supplied data; republishing or redistributing it is not permitted. Not presented as a percentage of float. No FINRA endorsement of this product is implied.
Insider activity (last 90 days)
| Form 4 activity (codes P/S) | CVS | UNH |
|---|---|---|
| Buys | 0 | 0 |
| Sells | 0 | 2 ($660,910) |
Non-derivative purchases (code P) and sales (code S) reported on SEC Form 4, which may be open-market or private (grants, exercises and tax withholding excluded). For context, about 15% of covered companies saw any reported insider purchase (code P) in a 90-day window.
Held by the same investors
9 tracked 13F managers hold both CVS HEALTH and Unitedhealth Group as of their latest quarterly filings: AQR Capital Management, Bridgewater Associates, Citadel Advisors, D. E. Shaw, Dodge & Cox, Gotham Asset Management, Millennium Management, Point72 Asset Management, Renaissance Technologies. See which superinvestors hold your own portfolio with the smart money checker.
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Data sourced from SEC EDGAR. Figures are as-reported and may be unaudited or restated; verify against the source filings before relying on them. Comparisons are descriptive (higher or lower on a reported figure), not a rating or a recommendation. Informational only. Not investment advice.