Rathbones Group PLC Raises Holdings in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Rathbones Group PLC lifted its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 2.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 171,321 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after buying an additional 3,975 shares during the period. Rathbones Group PLC’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $87,247,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in UNH. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter valued at $5,802,231,000. Swedbank AB bought a new position in UnitedHealth Group in the first quarter valued at about $1,117,462,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 107.8% during the 1st quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 2,306,729 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,141,113,000 after purchasing an additional 1,196,758 shares during the period. Baillie Gifford & Co. boosted its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 1,125.4% in the second quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 894,006 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $455,281,000 after buying an additional 821,050 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado increased its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 3,464.9% during the fourth quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado now owns 825,311 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $434,501,000 after buying an additional 802,160 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.86% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

UnitedHealth Group Price Performance

UnitedHealth Group stock opened at $594.32 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $569.08 and its 200 day moving average is $517.57. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 52-week low of $436.38 and a 52-week high of $607.94. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The company has a market cap of $548.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.33, a PEG ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 0.58.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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. The company had revenue of $98.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $98.73 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.55% and a net margin of 3.66%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $6.14 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 24th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th will be paid a $2.10 dividend. This represents a $8.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.41%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 16th. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 51.34%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently commented on UNH. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $481.00 to $647.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Barclays raised their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $560.00 to $604.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $555.00 to $615.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased 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. Finally, TD Cowen upped 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. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $614.17.

About UnitedHealth Group

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.