UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) Stock Price Down 0.9%

UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) was down 0.9% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $483.38 and last traded at $484.78. Approximately 609,725 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 86% from the average daily volume of 4,432,396 shares. The stock had previously closed at $489.03.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on UNH shares. Erste Group Bank reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $534.00 to $560.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $600.00 price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $618.00 to $584.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 5th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, UnitedHealth Group presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $570.05.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Up 0.1 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $445.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.59, a P/E/G ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.55. 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 business has a 50-day moving average of $483.69 and a 200-day moving average of $513.21.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 analysts’ expectations of $99.23 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $6.26 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.61 EPS for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 11th were given a dividend of $1.88 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 8th. This represents a $7.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.55%. UnitedHealth Group’s payout ratio is 45.97%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Thomas E. Roos sold 858 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $525.79, for a total transaction of $451,127.82. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 32,289 shares in the company, valued at $16,977,233.31. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,236 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $483.48, for a total value of $597,581.28. Following the sale, 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 SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO Thomas E. Roos sold 858 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 32,289 shares in the company, valued at $16,977,233.31. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On UnitedHealth Group

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Bray Capital Advisors grew its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 0.5% in the third quarter. Bray Capital Advisors now owns 9,616 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $4,848,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Innova Wealth Partners raised its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. Innova Wealth Partners now owns 737 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $372,000 after buying an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. TFC Financial Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 7.8% in the 3rd quarter. TFC Financial Management Inc. now owns 417 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $210,000 after buying an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Rosenbaum Jay D. grew its position in UnitedHealth Group by 44.6% during the 3rd quarter. Rosenbaum Jay D. now owns 823 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $415,000 after acquiring an additional 254 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Baxter Bros Inc. grew its position in UnitedHealth Group by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. Baxter Bros Inc. now owns 1,417 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $714,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares during the last quarter. 87.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

UnitedHealth Group Company Profile

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.