UnitedHealth Group (UNH) shares plunged 10.86% in pre-market trading on Thursday, following a report that the U.S. Department of Justice is conducting a criminal investigation into the company for possible Medicare fraud. This latest setback compounds recent challenges that have battered the healthcare giant's stock in recent weeks.
According to The Wall Street Journal, the DOJ's healthcare-fraud unit is overseeing the investigation, which has been active since at least last summer. While the exact nature of the potential criminal allegations remains unclear, sources familiar with the matter indicate that the federal probe is focusing on UnitedHealth's Medicare Advantage business practices.
This news comes just days after UnitedHealth suspended its 2025 financial guidance and announced the abrupt departure of CEO Andrew Witty. On Tuesday, the company cited rising medical costs as the reason for withdrawing its outlook, which triggered an 18% drop in shares to a four-year low.
UnitedHealth has stated that it has not been notified by the DOJ of any criminal investigation and maintains that it stands by the integrity of its Medicare Advantage program. However, investors appear increasingly wary of the mounting challenges facing the company.
The pre-market plunge follows a steep decline of nearly 18% on Tuesday after the announcement of the CEO change and guidance suspension. With the stock having lost almost 50% of its value over the past month, market participants will be closely watching for any further developments in this ongoing saga.
免责声明：投资有风险，本文并非投资建议，以上内容不应被视为任何金融产品的购买或出售要约、建议或邀请，作者或其他用户的任何相关讨论、评论或帖子也不应被视为此类内容。本文仅供一般参考，不考虑您的个人投资目标、财务状况或需求。TTM对信息的准确性和完整性不承担任何责任或保证，投资者应自行研究并在投资前寻求专业建议。