SVB Leerink analyst Daniel Grosslight noted that on August 30 UnitedHealth (UNH) announced that Teladoc (TDOC) will be joining its care network as the national Virtual Visit provider as of September for all fully insured and ASO clients who have not opted out of the Virtual Visits benefit. He said "at first blush" the announcement looks better than he had expected, though he still has questions for management. Overall, though, he calls the deal a "major win" for Teladoc that underscores what he sees as its "best-in-class" platform and maintains an Outperform rating on the shares. Reference Link

Deutsche Bank analyst George Hill raised the firm's price target on UnitedHealth to $562 from $545 and keeps a Buy rating on the shares. The company reported a Q1 earnings beat with many moving pieces caused by the cyberattack on Change Healthcare, which left earnings quality and guidance up to investor interpretation, the analyst tells investors in a research note. The firm sees the full impact of the hack, as well as conservatism around cost trend and utilization would impact UnitedHealth earnings by only 2% for the full year.

Notable gainers among liquid option names this morning include Genuine Parts (GPC) $159.09 +15.03, Globe Life (GL) $66.97 +3.74, Anthem (ELV) $532.10 +23.13, United Continental (UAL) $50.59 +1.84, and UnitedHealth (UNH) $494.80 +15.81.

Unusual total active option classes on open include: Wrap Technologies (WRAP), AstraZeneca (AZN), JetBlue (JBLU), United Continental (UAL), Taiwan Semi (TSM), Nokia (NOK), EBay (EBAY), Maplebear Inc (CART), Airbnb (ABNB), and UnitedHealth (UNH).

RBC Capital analyst Ben Hendrix lowered the firm's price target on UnitedHealth to $555 from $596 but keeps an Outperform rating on the shares. The company reported a "better than feared" Q1, but the debate over utilization trends is expected to persist through the first half as excess reserves skew the medical care ratio picture, the analyst tells investors in a research note. RBC also notes that its added caution reflects UnitedHealth's "reduced claims visibility".