Tocqueville Asset Management L.P. Takes $34.45 Million Position in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated $UNH

Tocqueville Asset Management L.P. purchased a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 82,887 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock, valued at approximately $34,450,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of UNH. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $4,376,167,000. BlackRock Inc. grew its position in UnitedHealth Group by 4.6% in the 2nd quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 76,863,061 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $31,946,594,000 after purchasing an additional 3,395,530 shares in the last quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 141.9% during the 4th quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,109,029 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $1,356,432,000 after buying an additional 2,410,128 shares in the last quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. grew its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 864.4% in the fourth quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. now owns 2,523,700 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $833,099,000 after acquiring an additional 2,262,006 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE increased its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 21.8% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 11,713,684 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $3,169,606,000 after acquiring an additional 2,097,859 shares during the last quarter. 87.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have issued reports on UNH shares. Mizuho upped their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $470.00 to $493.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Zacks Research raised shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. HSBC raised their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $300.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have assigned a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $455.92.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Patrick Hugh Conway sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $410.00, for a total transaction of $205,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 16,497 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,763,770. The trade was a 2.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting UnitedHealth Group

Here are the key news stories impacting UnitedHealth Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: UnitedHealth is reportedly prioritizing Medicare Advantage profitability over rapid membership growth by tightening benefits, improving pricing and controlling costs. The strategy could support stronger margins and more sustainable earnings, even if enrollment growth moderates. Is UnitedHealth Finding a Better Path to Medicare Advantage Growth?
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks Research added UNH to its Rank #1, or “Strong Buy,” lists for overall stocks, value stocks and income stocks. The repeated favorable rankings may reinforce investor confidence in the shares. New Strong Buy Stocks for August 21st
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts raised several forward EPS estimates, including Q1 2028 to $7.36 from $6.78 and Q2 2028 to $7.19 from $5.84. A separate report also noted an increase in the Q1 EPS estimate, while Zacks maintained a Strong Buy rating. Q1 EPS Estimate for UnitedHealth Group Increased by Analyst
• Neutral Sentiment: Forecast revisions were mixed: Q3 2027 EPS was reduced to $4.74 from $4.81 and Q4 2027 to $4.07 from $4.12, partially offsetting the increases for 2028.
• Negative Sentiment: Aon expects U.S. employer health-care costs to rise 9.5% in 2027. Persistent medical-cost inflation could pressure insurers’ margins and increase pricing, benefit and utilization-management challenges for UnitedHealth. AON Sees No Relief From Health-Cost Inflation

UnitedHealth Group Trading Up 1.6%

Shares of UNH stock opened at $390.94 on Friday. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 1 year low of $255.96 and a 1 year high of $461.62. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $413.99 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $355.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.78. The stock has a market capitalization of $350.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.16, a PEG ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 0.62.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.94 by $1.44. The company had revenue of $112.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $110.81 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 16.53% and a net margin of 3.14%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $4.08 earnings per share. UnitedHealth Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 19.500-20.000 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 19.81 earnings per share for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 22nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 14th will be issued a $2.32 dividend. This represents a $9.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 14th. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 59.72%.

UnitedHealth Group Company Profile

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.