KBC Group NV Sells 29,185 Shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

KBC Group NV cut its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 882,343 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after selling 29,185 shares during the period. UnitedHealth Group comprises approximately 1.6% of KBC Group NV’s portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest position. KBC Group NV’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $515,888,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 20.6% during the 1st quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 10,867 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $5,376,000 after purchasing an additional 1,857 shares in the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC grew its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 5.5% during the 1st quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 4,196 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $2,076,000 after buying an additional 217 shares during the period. Midwest Professional Planners LTD. bought a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the first quarter worth $210,000. Leo Wealth LLC increased its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 10.1% in the first quarter. Leo Wealth LLC now owns 1,112 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $549,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Trillium Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Trillium Asset Management LLC now owns 40,302 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $19,937,000 after purchasing an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.86% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently weighed in on UNH. KeyCorp started coverage on UnitedHealth Group in a report on Friday, October 11th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $675.00 price target on the stock. Stephens decreased their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $632.00 to $605.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $615.00 to $610.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Argus raised their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $570.00 to $600.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $597.00 to $640.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $615.53.

UnitedHealth Group Trading Down 1.4 %

Shares of UNH stock opened at $605.88 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $582.95 and a 200-day moving average of $547.62. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 12-month low of $436.38 and a 12-month high of $630.73. The firm has a market cap of $557.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.47, a PEG ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 15th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.15 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $7.00 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $100.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $99.14 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.37% and a net margin of 3.63%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $6.56 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.61 earnings per share for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 9th will be issued a dividend of $2.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 9th. This represents a $8.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.39%. UnitedHealth Group’s payout ratio is 54.72%.

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.