--- title: "Searching for Overlooked Opportunities? Oppenheimer Top Analysts Point to These 2 'Strong Buy' Stocks" type: "News" locale: "en" url: "https://longbridge.com/en/news/299430432.md" description: "Amid market volatility and recent Fed rate hikes, Oppenheimer analysts recommend seeking overlooked 'Strong Buy' stocks. They highlight Astrana Health (ASTH), a leader in value-based care using AI to improve patient outcomes. Despite slightly missing revenue expectations in Q2, Astrana beat EPS forecasts. Analyst Michael Wiederhorn cites strong growth drivers, including expanding full-risk arrangements, geographic expansion, and strategic acquisitions, positioning the company for long-term success." datetime: "2026-09-18T09:59:07.000Z" locales: - [zh-CN](https://longbridge.com/zh-CN/news/299430432.md) - [en](https://longbridge.com/en/news/299430432.md) - [zh-HK](https://longbridge.com/zh-HK/news/299430432.md) generator: "portal-rs" --- # Searching for Overlooked Opportunities? Oppenheimer Top Analysts Point to These 2 'Strong Buy' Stocks Markets have been volatile recently, as headwinds and tailwinds blow around each other. Among the former, persistent inflation pressures – with the Fed's preferred PCE gauge running at 3.7% – pushed the Fed to raise interest rates by 0.25% this week, its first hike since 2023, even as some inflation measures had shown signs of easing in the months prior. The tailwinds include the Q2 earnings season, which delivered another round of upside surprises: about 86% of S&P 500 companies beat EPS estimates, while year-over-year earnings growth topped 50% – the strongest pace since the second quarter of 2021, though a large share of that strength was concentrated in a handful of mega-cap names. It's a confusing situation, but Oppenheimer's chief investment strategist John Stoltzfus believes investors should not bow out of stocks just yet. "We continue to suggest that intermediate- to long-term investors should avoid blindly buying the dips on market volatility but rather seek out the 'babies that get thrown out with the bathwater' in market declines. Diversification with an emphasis for quality remains key in our view to delivering positive results," Stoltzfus noted. Some of Oppenheimer's top analysts are following this advice – particularly the part to diversify. They are recommending stocks that have frequently been overlooked – but that also feature 'Strong Buy' consensus ratings on the Street. Let's give them a closer look, using data drawn from the TipRanks platform, as well as a review of Oppenheimer analysts' comments. **Astrana Health** **(ASTH)** First up is Astrana Health, one of many companies bringing 'value-based care networks' to the fore. Astrana uses a combination of AI tech and old-fashioned medical management to help improve physician productivity and patient outcomes. The company was built from the physician perspective, and takes a physician-centric approach to medical management, with a commitment to delivering care that is high-quality and patient-centered. Astrana uses a proprietary platform to link doctors, support providers, and enhance patient outcomes, with the goal of improving value for all stakeholders across the healthcare system. By the numbers, Astrana's business is substantial. The company boasts over 20,000 providers in its networks, serving approximately 1.6 million patients. The company's overarching network includes affiliated provider networks, management service organizations, and integrated care delivery clinics. Under these, especially the last, patients can receive primary, specialty, and ancillary care. Digging deeper into Astrana's business model, we see that the company operates through a set of three core business units. These include Care Partners, Care Delivery, and Care Enablement. The first of these handles coordination and independent provider networks, allowing them to scale services for value-based care while taking on financial risk-bearing contracts. Care Delivery includes the operation of clinical delivery portals such as primary care practices, multi-specialty centers, and home health services. The object here is to streamline each patient's experience. Care Enablement covers the company's technical side, with an AI-native infrastructure for data analytics and administrative support. Astrana operates in a dozen states, including such major markets as Florida, Texas, and California, and growing markets such as Georgia and Arizona. A look at the company's 2Q26 report shows that Care Partners, the physician-centered business segment, is clearly the core of the firm. Total revenue, at $972.5 million, was up 49% year-over-year – but the Care Partners component came to $932.8 million. We should note that the total revenue was $12.7 million lower than had been expected. At the bottom line, the GAAP EPS of $0.40 was up from $0.19 in 2Q25, and it beat the forecast by a nickel per share. Astrana has caught the attention of 5-star Oppenheimer analyst Michael Wiederhorn, who lays out the background and explains why he sees a solid foundation for growth. "As a leader in the rapidly growing value-based care market, Astrana Health is, in our view, well positioned to take advantage of the growth by expanding its presence and targeting full-risk arrangements. Astrana benefits from strong barriers to entry due to its proprietary artificial intelligence-driven technology and decades of experience accumulated from managing risk-bearing relationships. The company has an attractive growth proposition, driven by its further risk penetration and untapped markets," the analyst opined. From there, Wiederhorn goes on to paint a bullish picture of the stock's future, pointing to several potential growth drivers. "We see various attractive opportunities for growth in the model: including 1) transitioning members to full-risk arrangements, 2) expanding to new geographies, 3) driving greater leverage, and 4) pursuing strategic acquisitions. Full-risk accounts for a disproportionate share of revenues, accounting for 43% of members and 81% of revenues. This has increased from 28% of members and 60% of revenues over the last two years due to management's efforts to promote the full-risk model…" When he quantifies his stance on Astrana, Wiederhorn comes down to a firmly bullish position. He rates the stock as Outperform (i.e., Buy), while setting a $53 price target that points to a 54% upside potential over the next 12 months. (To watch Wiederhorn's track record, click here) This is firmly in line with the Wall Street overall view on ASTH shares. The stock has 9 recent analyst reviews on record, and the split of 8 Buys to 1 Hold fully supports the Strong Buy consensus rating. The shares are currently trading for $34.30 and the average target price, now at $52.86, is practically the same as Wiederhorn's. (See **ASTH stock forecast**) ### Related Stocks - [ASTH.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/ASTH.US.md) - [OPY.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/OPY.US.md) - [.SPX.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/.SPX.US.md) ## Related News & Research - [Freedom Capital Markets maintains Buy rating on Astrana Health, $50 price target](https://longbridge.com/en/news/300683297.md) - [Astrana Health Showcases AI-Driven Value-Based Care Strategy](https://longbridge.com/en/news/299896629.md) - [DIC targets semiconductors, batteries, physical AI as growth businesses in shift toward AI-integrated society](https://longbridge.com/en/news/300901423.md) - [CrowdStrike Holdings (CRWD) Joins OpenAI Marketplace, Is The Stock Now Too Pricey?](https://longbridge.com/en/news/300880924.md) - [AI's $31.6T Buildout Faces a $6T Revenue Test](https://longbridge.com/en/news/300877631.md) --- > **Disclaimer: This article is for reference only and does not constitute any investment advice.**