Shares of health insurer UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) continue to be under pressure in the aftermath of the cyberattack on its subsidiary, Change Healthcare, in February.
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Potentially Massive Data Breach at UNH
This week, UNH disclosed that a sample of the breached files contained protected health information and personally identifiable information of customers. The breach could affect a substantial portion of the U.S. population. United estimates that the analysis of sufficient information and data review to identify and notify the impacted customers could take several months. Meanwhile, the company discovered 22 screenshots of the exfiltrated files on the dark web.
The Impact So Far
Despite the hack, last week United reported a nearly 9% increase in its revenue for the first quarter, along with a bottom line that exceeded expectations. However, this performance included an impact of $0.74 per share on its earnings per share (EPS). For the full year, UNH expects the cyberattack to have an impact of $1.15 to $1.35 per share on its bottom line.
Future Concerns
Additionally, concerns persist that the full extent of the damage from the breach may not yet be fully understood. According to reports, UNH paid nearly $22 million to the hackers in March. Before the hack, Change Healthcare oversaw approximately 15 billion transactions annually, and the full extent of the number of individuals whose data may have been compromised is still unknown.
Is UnitedHealth Group Stock a Buy, Sell, or a Hold?
UnitedHealth’s share price has declined by nearly 6% year-to-date amid these challenges. Overall, the Street has a Strong Buy consensus rating on the stock, alongside an average UNH price target of $591.29.
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