UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) Trading 1.1% Higher

UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)’s stock price shot up 1.1% on Monday . The company traded as high as $592.09 and last traded at $590.66. 469,046 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 89% from the average session volume of 4,143,617 shares. The stock had previously closed at $584.51.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on UNH shares. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $546.00 to $601.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $597.00 to $640.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. HSBC increased their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $580.00 to $610.00 in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Barclays lifted their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $560.00 to $604.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $546.00 to $559.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, UnitedHealth Group has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $614.17.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Up 0.5 %

The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $537.83 and its 200 day simple moving average is $509.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.88. The firm has a market cap of $542.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.59.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.80 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.66 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $98.86 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $98.73 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.55% and a net margin of 3.66%. UnitedHealth Group’s quarterly revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $6.14 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

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 yield of 1.43%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 16th. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 51.34%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 18th. The stock was 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 owns 7,785 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,507,748.55. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, CAO Thomas E. Roos sold 2,851 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 29,501 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,812,029.88. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 18th. The stock was 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 owns 7,785 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,507,748.55. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Macroview Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 671.4% during the second quarter. Macroview Investment Management LLC now owns 54 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 757.1% in the first quarter. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 60 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 53 shares during the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC purchased a new stake in UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Signature Resources Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 40.0% in the 2nd quarter. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC now owns 63 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 18 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.