UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) Trading Up 1.5%

UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)’s share price was up 1.5% on Monday . The stock traded as high as $567.40 and last traded at $567.06. Approximately 677,260 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 84% from the average daily volume of 4,259,780 shares. The stock had previously closed at $558.76.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $481.00 to $647.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $591.00 price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Barclays upped their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $560.00 to $604.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $555.00 to $615.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $640.00 to $680.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $614.17.

UnitedHealth Group Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $520.29 billion, a PE ratio of 34.60, a P/E/G ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $521.83 and a 200 day simple moving average of $504.89.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.80 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.66 by $0.14. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 3.66% and a return on equity of 26.55%. The firm had revenue of $98.86 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $98.73 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $6.14 EPS. UnitedHealth Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.69 EPS for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 24th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 16th will be given a dividend of $2.10 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 16th. This represents a $8.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.49%. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 51.34%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Thomas E. Roos sold 2,851 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $569.88, for a total transaction of $1,624,727.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 29,501 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,812,029.88. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, CAO Thomas E. Roos sold 2,851 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $569.88, for a total transaction of $1,624,727.88. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 29,501 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,812,029.88. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $579.03, for a total value of $868,545.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 7,785 shares in the company, valued at $4,507,748.55. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of UnitedHealth Group

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Macroview Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 671.4% in the 2nd quarter. Macroview Investment Management LLC now owns 54 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC acquired a new stake in UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 757.1% during the 1st quarter. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 60 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares during the last quarter. Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the second quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Signature Resources Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 40.0% during the 2nd quarter. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC now owns 63 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 18 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 87.86% of the company’s stock.

UnitedHealth Group Company Profile

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.