By Catherine Dunn

As UnitedHealth continues to execute on its turnaround efforts, Wall Street keeps showing signs that it likes the prospects for recovery.

Leerink Partners hiked its price target for UnitedHealth to $462 from $400 on Wednesday, citing higher margin forecasts for the company's Optum Health unit, which provides medical care to millions of patients.

"In our view, there's still a lot of embedded and unrealized earnings within this business, driving a multiyear margin story," Leerink analyst Whit Mayo wrote in a client note.

Leerink now forecasts operating margins of 3.8% for Optum Health in 2027, a one-percentage-point bump from the bank's previous model, and 6.5% in 2028, up from a previous 3.4% estimate.

The updated 2028 estimate "sits at the low end of the company's target margins and is consistent with updated management commentary at recent investor meetings and conferences," Mayo said.

UnitedHealth is trying to come back from a plummet in the healthcare giant's share price that began in spring 2025 on missed earnings expectations and concerns about higher medical costs.

Investors have rewarded the stock lately, amid signs that medical spending is stabilizing. Shares shot up 5% on June 4 on bullish notes from BofA Securities and Morgan Stanley, while the stock has risen about 24% so far this year.

In another signal Wall Street likes what it's seeing, UnitedHealth shares have traded north of $400 since the June 8 market close -- the first time the stock has been above that threshold in over a year.

UnitedHealth executives highlighted the Optum Health recovery story at BofA's healthcare conference in May. Some of the healthcare services within the unit "are performing well above our 6% to 8% target range and we will obviously continue to lean into those," said Ben Eklo, chief financial officer of the company's Optum division.

For those services performing below the target range, "that's where we have our highest and most intense turnaround plans, operating discipline, " Eklo added.

Write to Catherine Dunn at catherine.dunn@dowjones.com

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June 17, 2026 12:37 ET (16:37 GMT)

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