u/No_Fox9908 ·
Reddit — r/ValueInvesting
· June 15, 2026 at 19:24
· ⬆ 15 pts
· 💬 68 comments
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AI Summary
Summary
The author asks for advice on when to take profits on UNH, which he bought a year ago and is now up 50%, originally expecting a multi-year hold.
His thesis was that UNH was oversold during a controversy and he bought multiple tranches; he leans value-investor but struggles with profit-taking.
Quality assessment: Noise – the post is a personal dilemma, not a deep-dive DD; lacks quantitative analysis or new fundamental data on UNH.
Score15
Comments68
Upvote %81%
▶ Full Post Text
So my first tranche of UNH shares just hit the one year mark and I am up 50% and the hardest part like always at least for me is knowing when to take profits. I have 5 batches I bought as it was falling just about a year ago. Normally I am a long term buy and hold value investor but never seem to get the taking profits part right. If I am being honest I am happy with a 50% pop since I figured it would take a few years not one to make that. I try to always keep it simple and not over analyze my investments but I felt that this was oversold at the time.
UNH appreciated 50% in one year, a 2-3 standard deviation return, while the healthcare sector (XLV) has been flat. The top comment argues this is unsustainable and UNH is unlikely to "5x". The author himself admits he is "happy with a 50% pop" and that he "never seem to get the taking profits part right." The community consensus is to sell and recycle capital into another beaten-down opportunity. For a value investor, locking in an exceptional gain and redeploying into a new undervalued name is prudent. Holding further risks mean reversion and opportunity cost. Avoid initiating new long positions here. UNH could continue to grind higher if earnings beat or market sentiment rotates into healthcare; selling prematurely could miss further upside. The author’s original thesis (oversold, long-term quality) may still be intact.