Eads & Heald Wealth Management Has $2.87 Million Stake in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Eads & Heald Wealth Management decreased its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 6.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 4,902 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after selling 321 shares during the period. UnitedHealth Group accounts for about 1.4% of Eads & Heald Wealth Management’s portfolio, making the stock its 14th biggest position. Eads & Heald Wealth Management’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $2,866,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 0.6% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 84,405,255 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $41,755,280,000 after acquiring an additional 544,740 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 26,062,928 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $12,893,331,000 after buying an additional 94,641 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 0.4% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 8,039,601 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $4,094,247,000 after buying an additional 35,533 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 78,814.4% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 5,296,737 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $3,096,896,000 after acquiring an additional 5,290,025 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 30.0% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,816,254 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $1,942,956,000 after purchasing an additional 880,183 shares during the period. 87.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on UNH shares. Hsbc Global Res downgraded shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $597.00 to $640.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $615.00 to $595.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. TD Cowen increased their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $601.00 to $609.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Argus upped their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $570.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, UnitedHealth Group currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $615.53.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

NYSE:UNH opened at $567.56 on Friday. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 1 year low of $436.38 and a 1 year high of $608.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.88. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $581.96 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $541.50. The company has a market capitalization of $524.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.97, a P/E/G ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 0.58.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.00 by $0.15. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 3.63% and a return on equity of 26.37%. The business had revenue of $100.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $99.14 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $6.56 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.61 earnings per share for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 24th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 16th were given a dividend of $2.10 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 16th. This represents a $8.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.48%. UnitedHealth Group’s payout ratio is 54.72%.

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.