12 Best Long-Term Stocks to Invest in for Retirement

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1. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Dividend Yield: 3.32%

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 140

UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) is one of the best long-term retirement stocks. On February 5, Mizuho cut its price target on UnitedHealth (NYSE:UNH) to $350 from $430 but kept an Outperform rating, citing a delayed earnings recovery following the company’s Q4 results.

On February 3, Piper Sandler reiterated an Overweight rating on UnitedHealth Group with a $390 price target. The positive stance underscores the research firm’s confidence in Optum Health, the company’s division, following disclosures in its Q2 fiscal 2025 results.

Optum is expected to generate total operating earnings of greater than $13.2 billion with an operating margin of 5.1%. The research firm believes the guidance is achievable, with potential upside from strategic contracting, benefit design, and risk adjustment. UnitedHealth has already implemented decisive actions expected to restore margins through product rationalization.

The remarks follow solid fourth-quarter and full-year 2025 results, in which consolidated revenues were up 12% year over year to $447.6 billion. Earnings from operations totaled $19 billion, net margin was 2.7%, and cash flows from operations were $19.7 billion.

“We confronted challenges directly and concluded 2025 as a strengthened organization with momentum to better serve our stakeholders and further improve our performance,” stated Stephen Hemsley, Chief Executive Officer of UnitedHealth Group.

UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) is a leading, diversified global healthcare company that improves health systems and patient outcomes through two core, complementary businesses. It offers health insurance/benefits) and provides data-driven, technology-enabled care services.

While we acknowledge the potential of UNH to grow, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and have limited downside risk. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than UNH and that has 100x upside potential, check out our report about this cheapest AI stock.

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