Washington Trust Bank Sells 1,058 Shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Washington Trust Bank lowered its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 3.2% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 32,331 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after selling 1,058 shares during the quarter. UnitedHealth Group makes up approximately 1.8% of Washington Trust Bank’s holdings, making the stock its 16th biggest holding. Washington Trust Bank’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $18,903,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 78,814.4% during the 3rd 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 purchasing an additional 5,290,025 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB bought a new stake in UnitedHealth Group during the 1st quarter worth about $1,117,462,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 107.8% during the first 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 last quarter. Lone Pine Capital LLC acquired a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the 2nd quarter worth $480,903,000. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 30.0% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,816,254 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,942,956,000 after buying an additional 880,183 shares during the period. 87.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of UnitedHealth Group stock traded up $3.66 during trading on Thursday, reaching $600.35. The stock had a trading volume of 327,657 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,882,888. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $581.13 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $543.74. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 52 week low of $436.38 and a 52 week high of $608.63. The company has a market capitalization of $554.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.87, a P/E/G ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 company had revenue of $100.82 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $99.14 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $6.56 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 9th will be paid a $2.10 dividend. This represents a $8.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.40%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 9th. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 54.72%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

UNH has been the subject of several recent research reports. Hsbc Global Res cut UnitedHealth Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $615.00 to $595.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $591.00 to $644.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. StockNews.com lowered UnitedHealth Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $525.00 to $630.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $615.53.

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.