MA vs UNH: Which Is the Better Buy?
Side-by-side comparison of Mastercard Incorporated and UnitedHealth Group Incorporated — fair value, conviction, valuation metrics, and QuantHub research signals.
Updated 2026-05-13.
Mastercard Incorporated · Financial Services
$499.81
+5.0% upside to fair value
Grade B+
High Quality
VS
UnitedHealth Group Incorporated · Healthcare
$353.52
+45.0% upside to fair value
Grade B
High Quality
QuantHub Verdict
UNH has more upside to fair value
(+45.0%).
UNH trades at a lower forward P/E
(26.7x).
These are model outputs — not personalized investment advice.
See all research →
Valuation & Fundamentals
| Metric |
MA |
UNH |
| Current Price |
$499.81 |
$353.52 |
| Fair Value Estimate |
$525.00 |
$512.60 |
| Upside to Fair Value |
+5.0%
|
+45.0%
|
| Market Cap |
$441.6B |
$320.9B |
| Forward P/E |
28.6x
|
26.7x
|
| EV / EBITDA |
21.3x
|
16.1x
|
| Price / Sales |
13.0x
|
0.7x
|
| Price / FCF |
24.9x
|
16.3x
|
| Revenue Growth YoY |
+15.8%
|
+2.0%
|
| Gross Margin |
83.0%
|
18.8%
|
| Operating Margin |
59.4%
|
4.2%
|
| Return on Equity |
206.1%
|
12.4%
|
| Dividend Yield |
0.6% |
0% |
| FCF Yield |
4.01%
|
6.13%
|
| Analyst Consensus |
Strong Buy
|
Strong Buy
|
Investment Thesis
Mastercard is one of two global payment network duopolists alongside Visa, with structurally high margins (83% gross, 59% operating, 46% net), powerful network effects, and durable secular tailwinds from the ongoing cash-to-card and card-to-digital migration. Q1 2026 results reported April 30 showed revenue of $8.40 billion (+15.8% YoY) and EPS of $4.35 (+20.8% YoY), driven by continued cross-bor…
UnitedHealth Group Incorporated operates as a leading healthcare company with two main platforms: UnitedHealthcare, providing health benefits coverage, and Optum, offering information and technology services. The company benefits from a durable competitive moat due to its scale, integrated platforms, and broad market reach serving over 170 million consumers. Despite strong revenue growth of 12% y…
Accumulation Zones
| Metric |
MA |
UNH |
| Zone Low |
$393.75 |
$384.45 |
| Zone High |
$446.25 |
$435.71 |
| In Buy Zone? |
No
|
Yes
|