CNO Financial Group, Inc. vs MOLINA HEALTHCARE, INC., two Managed Care stocks. A side-by-side on valuation, growth, margins, returns, and what each price is betting.
CNO earns 9.8% on equity selling life and supplemental health policies to middle-income seniors; Molina earns 4.6% administering Medicaid, and neither figure impresses until the year is considered: Molina's margin structure was crushed by rate-lag (0.42% net), while CNO's 5.4% net margin arrived intact. CNO trades at 21.1 times earnings with a 1.3% dividend and a 13.6% free-cash figure that carries the standard insurance-float caveat; Molina has no usable multiple. The debt postures differ, CNO effectively unlevered, Molina at 0.92 turns. A steady niche underwriter priced as ordinary sits across from a stressed government contractor priced for eventual repair; the ordinary one currently earns all the profit on the page.
Comparison updated 2026-07-10.
| Metric | CNO | MOH |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $52.52 | $229.88 |
| Market cap | $5.0B | $11.7B |
| Sector | Managed Care | Managed Care |
| Stage | Mature | Mature |
| P/E | 21.1 | — |
| P/B | 2.02 | 2.87 |
| P/S | 1.12 | 0.26 |
| EV/EBITDA | 7.6 | 16.5 |
| Revenue growth | +5.0% | +8.0% |
| Operating margin | 12.6% | 0.8% |
| Net margin | 5.4% | 0.4% |
| Return on equity | 9.8% | 4.6% |
| Return on assets | 0.6% | 1.1% |
| Return on invested capital | 18.0% | 2.6% |
| FCF yield | 13.6% | 2.1% |
| Dividend yield | 1.3% | — |
| Debt / equity | 0.00 | 0.92 |
| Current ratio | — | 1.63 |
| Altman Z (solvency) | 0.30 | 4.02 |
| Piotroski F (quality) | 7 / 9 | 7 / 9 |
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The stronger value is highlighted per metric where one is strictly better on that single number; it is not an overall verdict on either company. For informational and research purposes only. Not investment advice. Not a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any security. boothcheck is not a registered investment adviser. Past performance does not guarantee future results.