UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) Trading Up 0.2%

UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)’s share price was up 0.2% during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $494.87 and last traded at $493.34. Approximately 407,026 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 91% from the average daily volume of 4,366,376 shares. The stock had previously closed at $492.45.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have weighed in on UNH. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $596.00 to $555.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. HSBC upgraded UnitedHealth Group from a “reduce” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $460.00 target price for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $534.00 to $560.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. TD Cowen reduced their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $607.00 to $546.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $600.00 to $525.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, UnitedHealth Group has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $570.05.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $481.45 and its 200 day simple moving average is $511.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.85. The stock has a market cap of $462.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.76, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.55.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.63 by $0.28. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.50% and a net margin of 4.05%. The firm had revenue of $99.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $99.23 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $6.26 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.6 earnings per share for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Monday, March 11th were issued a dividend of $1.88 per share. This represents a $7.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 8th. UnitedHealth Group’s payout ratio is 45.97%.

Insider Buying and Selling at UnitedHealth Group

In related news, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,236 shares of UnitedHealth Group stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $483.48, for a total value of $597,581.28. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 9,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,527,306.72. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other UnitedHealth Group news, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,236 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $483.48, for a total transaction of $597,581.28. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 9,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,527,306.72. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CAO Thomas E. Roos sold 858 shares of UnitedHealth Group stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $525.79, for a total value of $451,127.82. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 32,289 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,977,233.31. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.35% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On UnitedHealth Group

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of UNH. Cozad Asset Management Inc. increased its position in UnitedHealth Group by 10.7% in the 1st quarter. Cozad Asset Management Inc. now owns 18,456 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $9,130,000 after purchasing an additional 1,785 shares during the last quarter. QCM Cayman Ltd. bought a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the first quarter valued at approximately $281,000. William Blair Investment Management LLC grew its position in UnitedHealth Group by 21.4% in the first quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 977,346 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $483,493,000 after acquiring an additional 172,564 shares in the last quarter. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 11.9% during the 1st quarter. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC now owns 30,982 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $15,327,000 after purchasing an additional 3,295 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sheets Smith Wealth Management increased its position in UnitedHealth Group by 4.1% during the first quarter. Sheets Smith Wealth Management now owns 5,222 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $2,583,000 after buying an additional 208 shares during the last quarter. 87.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About UnitedHealth Group

UnitedHealth Group Incorporated operates as a diversified health care company in the United States. The company operates through four segments: UnitedHealthcare, Optum Health, Optum Insight, and Optum Rx. The UnitedHealthcare segment offers consumer-oriented health benefit plans and services for national employers, public sector employers, mid-sized employers, small businesses, and individuals; health care coverage, and health and well-being services to individuals age 50 and older addressing their needs; Medicaid plans, children's health insurance and health care programs; and health and dental benefits, and hospital and clinical services, as well as health care benefits products and services to state programs caring for the economically disadvantaged, medically underserved, and those without the benefit of employer-funded health care coverage.