Centene vs UnitedHealth
UnitedHealth reported revenue of $447.6 billion in fiscal 2025, 2.3 times Centene's $194.8 billion in fiscal 2025. Centene's revenue grew 19.4% in its latest year, and UnitedHealth's grew 11.8%. Centene had an operating margin of -3.9%, against 4.2% at UnitedHealth. Free cash flow was $4.3 billion at Centene and $16.1 billion at UnitedHealth.
Side by side
| Centene | UnitedHealth | |
|---|---|---|
| Latest fiscal year | FY2025, Dec 31, 2025 | FY2025, Dec 31, 2025 |
| Revenue | $194.8B | $447.6B |
| Revenue growth | 19.4% | 11.8% |
| Revenue growth a year, last 5 years | 11.9% | 11.7% |
| Gross margin | — | 88.7% |
| Operating margin | −3.9% | 4.2% |
| Net margin | −3.4% | 2.7% |
| Free cash flow | $4.3B | $16.1B |
| Free cash flow margin | 2.2% | 3.6% |
| Return on capital | −26.4% | 11.2% |
| Net debt to EBITDA | — | 2.2x |
| Dividends and buybacks | $475M | $13.5B |
| Change in diluted share count | −5.8% | −1.9% |
| Last close | $68.03 | $410.70 |
| P/E at the last close | — | 26.4× |
| Insider trades, last 12 months | sold $14.6 million | sold $944,910 |
| Piotroski F-score | 5 of 8 | 7 of 9 |
Amounts in each company's own currency, US$ unless marked (a foreign company may report in another), each company's latest fiscal year from its 10-K, or 20-F or 40-F for a foreign company. Growth rates compare with the year before; the five-year rate is the average a year. Free cash flow is cash from operations minus capital spending; return on capital is after-tax operating income over the money invested in the business; P/E is the last close over the latest earnings per share. Banks are measured differently (return on equity, efficiency ratio), so some rows apply to one company only.
Ten years
Revenue
US$ billions, fiscal years
CenteneUnitedHealth
Operating margin
Percent of revenue
CenteneUnitedHealth
Free cash flow
US$ billions. Cash from operations minus capital expenditure.
CenteneUnitedHealth
Source: the companies' Form 10-K filings, from SEC EDGAR, and the last close. For information only, not investment advice: the figures describe results, not which company is the better investment. The Filing Desk is not affiliated with either company. Full figures on the Centene and UnitedHealth pages.