UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) Stock Price Up 1% – What’s Next?

UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)’s stock price was up 1% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $273.38 and last traded at $272.2960. Approximately 5,809,206 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 41% from the average daily volume of 9,921,009 shares. The stock had previously closed at $269.54.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on UNH shares. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $418.00 to $340.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $391.00 to $327.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $408.00 to $361.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Finally, Evercore raised UnitedHealth Group to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, UnitedHealth Group has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $372.13.

UnitedHealth Group Trading Down 1.1%

The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $293.25 and a 200-day simple moving average of $323.43. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The firm has a market cap of $242.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.29, a P/E/G ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 0.41.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 27th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $2.11 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.09 by $0.02. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 2.69% and a return on equity of 14.79%. The company had revenue of $113.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $113.38 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $6.81 earnings per share. UnitedHealth Group’s quarterly revenue was up 12.3% on a year-over-year basis. UnitedHealth Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 17.750- EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 9th were issued a $2.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 9th. This represents a $8.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.3%. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 67.02%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On UnitedHealth Group

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Guerra Advisors Inc purchased a new stake in UnitedHealth Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,059,000. Berkshire Hathaway Inc bought a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the second quarter valued at approximately $1,572,193,000. Carnegie Investment Counsel grew its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 2.2% in the third quarter. Carnegie Investment Counsel now owns 105,621 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $36,471,000 after purchasing an additional 2,316 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in UnitedHealth Group by 48.9% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,790 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,806,000 after purchasing an additional 1,901 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Phoenix Financial Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 111.5% in the 3rd quarter. Phoenix Financial Ltd. now owns 41,986 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $14,282,000 after buying an additional 22,137 shares during the period. 87.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About UnitedHealth Group

UnitedHealth Group Inc is a diversified health care company headquartered in Minnetonka, Minnesota, that operates two primary business platforms: UnitedHealthcare and Optum. Founded in 1977, the company provides a broad range of health benefits and health care services to individuals, employers, governmental entities and other organizations. Its operations span commercial employer-sponsored plans, individual and Medicare and Medicaid programs, and services for customers and health systems in the United States and selected international markets.

UnitedHealthcare is the company’s benefits business, administering health plans and networks, managing provider relationships, and offering coverage products for employers, individuals, and government-sponsored programs.