Emprise Bank Cuts Stock Position in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Emprise Bank reduced its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 0.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 3,831 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after selling 25 shares during the quarter. UnitedHealth Group comprises about 1.2% of Emprise Bank’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest position. Emprise Bank’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $1,951,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. WestEnd Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 14.1% during the 2nd quarter. WestEnd Advisors LLC now owns 79,562 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $40,518,000 after acquiring an additional 9,819 shares during the last quarter. Bank OZK lifted its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 12.7% during the second quarter. Bank OZK now owns 835 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $425,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares during the last quarter. Wealthstream Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 2.6% in the second quarter. Wealthstream Advisors Inc. now owns 1,822 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $928,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Braun Stacey Associates Inc. lifted its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 4.6% during the 2nd quarter. Braun Stacey Associates Inc. now owns 43,342 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $22,072,000 after buying an additional 1,890 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Smith Salley Wealth Management increased its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 18.8% during the second quarter. Smith Salley Wealth Management now owns 2,751 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $1,401,000 after acquiring an additional 436 shares during the period. 87.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently issued reports on UNH. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $546.00 to $559.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $640.00 to $680.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $560.00 to $604.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Argus increased their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $570.00 to $600.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $595.00 to $615.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. 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. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $614.17.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

NYSE:UNH traded down $1.43 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $590.14. 2,944,699 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,101,315. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 52-week low of $436.38 and a 52-week high of $593.26. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $546.21 and its 200-day moving average price is $511.95. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $544.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.07, a PEG ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.59.

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

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 24th. Stockholders 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 1.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 16th. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 51.34%.

Insider Activity at UnitedHealth Group

In other news, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,507,748.55. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other news, CAO Thomas E. Roos sold 2,851 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $569.88, for a total transaction of $1,624,727.88. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 29,501 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,812,029.88. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s 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 in the company, valued at $4,507,748.55. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by 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.