UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) Shares Acquired by Brown Advisory Inc.

Brown Advisory Inc. raised its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 1.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 707,545 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after buying an additional 13,157 shares during the quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. owned about 0.08% of UnitedHealth Group worth $357,919,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in UNH. NewSquare Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in UnitedHealth Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Hurley Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. AlphaMark Advisors LLC acquired a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd acquired a new stake in UnitedHealth Group in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.86% of the company’s stock.

UnitedHealth Group Price Performance

UNH stock opened at $398.72 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $495.85 and a two-hundred day moving average of $528.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $362.92 billion, a PE ratio of 25.72, a P/E/G ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a one year low of $393.11 and a one year high of $630.73.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 17th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.20 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.29 by ($0.09). UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.69% and a net margin of 3.60%. The firm had revenue of $109.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $111.56 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $6.91 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.54 earnings per share for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th were given a dividend of $2.10 per share. This represents a $8.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.11%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. UnitedHealth Group’s payout ratio is presently 35.18%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on UNH shares. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $642.00 to $560.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 21st. HSBC reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $490.00 price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $694.00 to $660.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $700.00 price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $652.00 to $525.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $596.86.

UnitedHealth Group 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.