UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) Trading 0.4% Higher

UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) rose 0.4% on Monday . The stock traded as high as $580.70 and last traded at $580.02. Approximately 171,485 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 96% from the average daily volume of 4,202,688 shares. The stock had previously closed at $577.68.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently commented on UNH. Jefferies Financial Group raised UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $481.00 to $647.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Barclays lifted their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $560.00 to $604.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $546.00 to $559.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $546.00 to $601.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $595.00 to $615.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, UnitedHealth Group has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $614.17.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Down 0.4 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $533.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.42, a P/E/G ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.59. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $532.75 and a two-hundred day moving average of $508.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.88.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.66 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $98.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $98.73 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 3.66% and a return on equity of 26.55%. The business’s revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $6.14 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.69 earnings per share for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 24th. Investors of record on Monday, September 16th will be paid a dividend of $2.10 per share. This represents a $8.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.45%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 16th. UnitedHealth Group’s payout ratio is currently 51.34%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 approximately $4,507,748.55. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other UnitedHealth Group news, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 7,785 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,507,748.55. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Thomas E. Roos sold 2,851 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 17th. The stock was 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 owns 29,501 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,812,029.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of UnitedHealth Group

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Granite Bay Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 2nd quarter valued at $4,470,000. Ted Buchan & Co purchased a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the second quarter worth about $1,748,000. Advisory Alpha LLC grew its position in UnitedHealth Group by 7.8% during the 2nd quarter. Advisory Alpha LLC now owns 4,415 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $2,249,000 after acquiring an additional 320 shares during the last quarter. Truist Financial Corp lifted its position in UnitedHealth Group by 46.7% in the second quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 898,406 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $457,522,000 after purchasing an additional 286,122 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pathway Financial Advisers LLC grew its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 3.5% in the second quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 6,718 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $3,372,000 after purchasing an additional 230 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.86% of the company’s stock.

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.