Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC Lowers Stock Position in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC reduced its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 3.0% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 677,850 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after selling 20,957 shares during the quarter. UnitedHealth Group makes up 1.1% of Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 14th largest position. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC owned 0.07% of UnitedHealth Group worth $345,202,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of UNH. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 0.6% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 84,405,255 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $41,755,280,000 after acquiring an additional 544,740 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 0.4% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 26,062,928 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $12,893,331,000 after buying an additional 94,641 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors grew its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 15,122,203 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $7,961,369,000 after buying an additional 324,733 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors raised its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 4.8% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 11,860,985 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $6,244,158,000 after acquiring an additional 542,424 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new stake in UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $5,802,231,000. 87.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Up 0.3 %

UNH traded up $1.87 on Tuesday, reaching $580.65. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,638,350 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,197,382. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $531.06 and a two-hundred day moving average of $507.93. The company has a market capitalization of $536.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.56, a P/E/G ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.59. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $436.38 and a fifty-two week high of $591.54. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.80 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.66 by $0.14. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.55% and a net margin of 3.66%. The firm had revenue of $98.86 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $98.73 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $6.14 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 24th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 16th will be issued a $2.10 dividend. This represents a $8.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.45%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 16th. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.34%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on UNH. HSBC boosted their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $580.00 to $610.00 in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Jefferies Financial Group raised UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $481.00 to $647.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Argus upped their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $570.00 to $600.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $525.00 to $630.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $595.00 to $615.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $614.17.

Insider Activity at UnitedHealth Group

In related news, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $579.03, for a total transaction of $868,545.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 7,785 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,507,748.55. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other UnitedHealth Group news, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,500 shares of UnitedHealth Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $579.03, for a total value of $868,545.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 7,785 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,507,748.55. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Thomas E. Roos sold 2,851 shares of UnitedHealth Group stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $569.88, for a total value of $1,624,727.88. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 29,501 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,812,029.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

UnitedHealth Group 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.