UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) Shares Acquired by Meridian Wealth Advisors LLC

Meridian Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 0.9% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 13,193 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after buying an additional 115 shares during the quarter. UnitedHealth Group accounts for 1.1% of Meridian Wealth Advisors LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest holding. Meridian Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $6,674,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter worth $1,914,740,000. Amundi lifted its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 97.2% in the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 6,069,100 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $3,183,132,000 after acquiring an additional 2,991,470 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 76,830.4% in the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,888,641 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $955,388,000 after purchasing an additional 1,886,186 shares in the last quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec increased its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 129.7% in the 3rd quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 1,029,540 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $601,951,000 after purchasing an additional 581,324 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 45,540,102 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $26,626,387,000 after purchasing an additional 563,554 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.86% of the company’s stock.

UnitedHealth Group Trading Up 1.3 %

UNH opened at $517.72 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $473.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.40, a P/E/G ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.62. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $510.19 and its 200-day moving average is $547.11. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 52-week low of $436.38 and a 52-week high of $630.73. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.74 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $100.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $101.60 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 3.60% and a return on equity of 26.69%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $5.83 earnings per share. Analysts expect that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th were paid a $2.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. This represents a $8.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.62%. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 54.19%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn purchased 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 17th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $511.57 per share, for a total transaction of $511,570.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 4,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,302,065. This represents a 28.57 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have issued reports on UNH. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $700.00 price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Friday, January 17th. HSBC raised shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $595.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 10th. StockNews.com raised shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $694.00 to $660.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Stephens raised their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $605.00 to $675.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Twenty equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $629.32.

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.