Braun Stacey Associates Inc. Raises Stake in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Braun Stacey Associates Inc. boosted its position in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 6.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 45,941 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after buying an additional 2,599 shares during the quarter. Braun Stacey Associates Inc.’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $26,861,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in UNH. Tealwood Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in UnitedHealth Group in the third quarter worth $2,905,000. Asset Planning Services Inc. LA ADV boosted its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 1.2% during the third quarter. Asset Planning Services Inc. LA ADV now owns 12,465 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $7,288,000 after buying an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC boosted its position in UnitedHealth Group by 13.7% in the third quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 24,976 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $14,603,000 after purchasing an additional 3,006 shares during the last quarter. Americana Partners LLC boosted its position in UnitedHealth Group by 10.8% in the third quarter. Americana Partners LLC now owns 20,377 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $11,914,000 after purchasing an additional 1,984 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in UnitedHealth Group by 14.8% in the second quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 9,960 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $5,072,000 after purchasing an additional 1,283 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.86% of the company’s stock.

UnitedHealth Group Trading Down 0.2 %

UNH opened at $592.23 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $545.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.58, a PEG ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 12 month low of $436.38 and a 12 month high of $630.73. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $582.84 and a 200-day moving average price of $549.98.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.00 by $0.15. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.37% and a net margin of 3.63%. The company had revenue of $100.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $99.14 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $6.56 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 9th will be issued a $2.10 dividend. This represents a $8.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.42%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 9th. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 54.72%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. HSBC cut UnitedHealth Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. KeyCorp initiated coverage on UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Friday, October 11th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $675.00 target price on the stock. UBS Group decreased their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $680.00 to $650.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. StockNews.com raised UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, Barclays dropped their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $604.00 to $603.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price 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.