UnitedHealth Group Incorporated $UNH Stake Lessened by Ritholtz Wealth Management

Ritholtz Wealth Management cut its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 9.1% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 20,368 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after selling 2,037 shares during the period. Ritholtz Wealth Management’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $7,477,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. BlackRock Inc. grew its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 4.6% during the 2nd quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 76,863,061 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $31,946,594,000 after acquiring an additional 3,395,530 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 0.7% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 45,633,267 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $18,966,555,000 after purchasing an additional 301,081 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 6.1% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 10,704,994 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $4,449,317,000 after purchasing an additional 616,723 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 5.8% during the 2nd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 10,675,175 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $4,436,923,000 after purchasing an additional 583,536 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LP grew its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 1,443.7% during the second quarter. Corient Private Wealth LP now owns 8,447,224 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $3,510,920,000 after purchasing an additional 7,900,011 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.86% of the company’s stock.

UnitedHealth Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:UNH opened at $403.14 on Thursday. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 12 month low of $255.96 and a 12 month high of $461.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $361.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.02, a P/E/G ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 0.74 and a quick ratio of 0.74. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $391.12 and its 200 day moving average price is $364.76.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 13th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $4.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.14 by $0.55. The company had revenue of $112.72 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $111.31 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 3.53% and a return on equity of 17.95%. UnitedHealth Group’s revenue for the quarter was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.59 earnings per share. UnitedHealth Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 20.500- EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 20.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 15th. Investors of record on Monday, December 7th will be given a $2.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 7th. This represents a $9.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio is 53.00%.

Insider Transactions at UnitedHealth Group

In related news, CEO Patrick Conway sold 1,169 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $390.00, for a total transaction of $455,910.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 15,328 shares in the company, valued at $5,977,920. This trade represents a 7.09% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.19% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on UNH. Bank of America restated a “buy” rating and issued a $450.00 price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Monday, July 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $516.00 to $524.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 16th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $526.00 to $487.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 27th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $529.00 to $531.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 27th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $401.00 to $490.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 17th. Twenty investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $463.93.

About UnitedHealth Group

UnitedHealth Group is a diversified health care company that provides health benefits and health services through two main businesses: UnitedHealthcare and Optum. UnitedHealthcare offers health insurance and related benefit plans to individuals, employers and government programs, including Medicare and Medicaid. Optum provides services across the health care system, including care delivery, pharmacy services, pharmacy benefit management, health technology and data analytics. Its businesses serve consumers, health care providers, employers, health plans and government organizations.