UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) Price Target Increased to $571.00 by Analysts at Piper Sandler

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) had its price target upped by equities research analysts at Piper Sandler from $566.00 to $571.00 in a report released on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “overweight” rating on the healthcare conglomerate’s stock. Piper Sandler’s target price indicates a potential upside of 18.89% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other research firms also recently weighed in on UNH. HSBC upgraded shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “reduce” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $460.00 target price on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 4th. TD Cowen reduced their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $607.00 to $546.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $618.00 to $584.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 5th. Erste Group Bank reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $591.00 price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, UnitedHealth Group presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $571.20.

UnitedHealth Group Price Performance

NYSE UNH traded up $11.39 on Wednesday, reaching $480.28. The company had a trading volume of 6,631,769 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,434,561. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The stock has a market capitalization of $442.78 billion, a PE ratio of 20.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 0.54. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $490.31 and its 200 day moving average price is $515.63. UnitedHealth Group has a 12 month low of $436.38 and a 12 month high of $554.70.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.54 by $0.37. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 6.02% and a return on equity of 26.39%. The company had revenue of $99.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $99.23 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $6.26 EPS. UnitedHealth Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that UnitedHealth Group will post 27.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at UnitedHealth Group

In other news, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,236 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $483.48, for a total value of $597,581.28. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 9,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,527,306.72. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CAO Thomas E. Roos sold 858 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $525.79, for a total transaction of $451,127.82. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 32,289 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,977,233.31. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,236 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $483.48, for a total transaction of $597,581.28. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 9,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,527,306.72. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On UnitedHealth Group

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of UNH. Axiom Financial Strategies LLC acquired a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $210,000. McGowan Group Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 8.9% during the 1st quarter. McGowan Group Asset Management Inc. now owns 744 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $379,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 31.8% during the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 250,196 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $127,592,000 after purchasing an additional 60,300 shares in the last quarter. MAS Advisors LLC increased its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 10.8% during the 1st quarter. MAS Advisors LLC now owns 463 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $241,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Western Trust Bank acquired a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the first quarter worth $875,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.86% of the company’s stock.

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.