UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH – Get Rating) has been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $599.56.
Several equities analysts have recently commented on UNH shares. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $588.00 to $592.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 17th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $569.00 to $615.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 18th. SVB Leerink cut their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $625.00 to $618.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 17th. Credit Suisse Group raised their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 7th. Finally, StockNews.com initiated coverage on UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Wednesday, October 12th. They set a “strong-buy” rating on the stock.
UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance
UNH stock opened at $490.00 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $530.35 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $525.43. UnitedHealth Group has a twelve month low of $445.73 and a twelve month high of $558.10. The firm has a market cap of $457.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.00, a PEG ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 0.73.
UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH – Get Rating) last released its earnings results on Friday, October 14th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $5.79 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.45 by $0.34. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.59% and a net margin of 6.17%. The business had revenue of $80.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $80.54 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $4.52 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 11.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that UnitedHealth Group will post 22.02 earnings per share for the current year.
UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement
The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 13th. Investors of record on Monday, December 5th were issued a dividend of $1.65 per share. This represents a $6.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.35%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 2nd. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.32%.
Insider Buying and Selling
In related news, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 450 shares of UnitedHealth Group stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $542.30, for a total transaction of $244,035.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 8,736 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,737,532.80. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.40% of the company’s stock.
Institutional Inflows and Outflows
Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. GoalVest Advisory LLC raised its position in UnitedHealth Group by 15.1% during the fourth quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 2,395 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,270,000 after acquiring an additional 314 shares in the last quarter. Epiq Partners LLC increased its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Epiq Partners LLC now owns 2,178 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,155,000 after buying an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Legacy Private Trust Co. increased its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Legacy Private Trust Co. now owns 4,185 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $2,219,000 after buying an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV increased its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 50,408 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $26,725,000 after buying an additional 138 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Martin Capital Partners LLC increased its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Martin Capital Partners LLC now owns 9,200 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $4,878,000 after buying an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. 86.31% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
About UnitedHealth Group
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UnitedHealth Group Incorporated operates as a diversified health care company in the United States. It 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 well-being services to individuals age 50 and older addressing their needs for preventive and acute health care services, as well as services dealing with chronic disease and other specialized issues for older individuals; Medicaid plans, children’s health insurance and health care programs; health and dental benefits; and hospital and clinical services.
Further Reading
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