FILE PHOTO: Berkshire Hathaway logo is displayed on a screen on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, U.S., May 10, 2023. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File Photo

(Reuters) -Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway has acquired 5 million shares in UnitedHealth Group, a regulatory filing showed on Thursday, sending the health insurer's stock up 7% in extended trading.

Billionaire investor Buffett owned about 1.18 million shares in UnitedHealth between 2006 and 2009, before selling his entire stake in 2010 amid a broader retreat from health insurers.

The investment comes as UnitedHealth faces soaring medical costs, federal investigations, the fallout of the killing of a top executive and a cyberattack last year.

The healthcare conglomerate has signaled prolonged pain with a new, far lower profit forecast as it sees billions of additional costs in the upcoming quarters.

Shares of the Dow component have slumped 46% so far this year.

(Reporting by Christy Santhosh in Bengaluru; Editing by Alan Barona and Sriraj Kalluvila)