UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) Stake Decreased by McIlrath & Eck LLC

McIlrath & Eck LLC lessened its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 46.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 341 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after selling 294 shares during the quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $173,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 19,956,219 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $10,068,869,000 after acquiring an additional 319,515 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors raised its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 6.2% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 15,616,007 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $7,899,905,000 after buying an additional 906,365 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the fourth quarter worth about $6,375,744,000. Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 12.5% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 9,503,671 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $4,807,527,000 after purchasing an additional 1,058,488 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 10.7% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 8,923,770 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $4,514,178,000 after purchasing an additional 861,854 shares during the last quarter. 87.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Up 1.9%

Shares of NYSE UNH opened at $321.76 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $464.33 and a 200 day moving average price of $510.17. The stock has a market cap of $291.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.76, a P/E/G ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.56. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 52-week low of $248.88 and a 52-week high of $630.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.83.

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

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th were issued a dividend of $2.10 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. This represents a $8.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.61%. UnitedHealth Group’s payout ratio is presently 35.18%.

Insider Buying and Selling at UnitedHealth Group

In related news, Director Kristen Gil bought 3,700 shares of UnitedHealth Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 15th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $271.17 per share, with a total value of $1,003,329.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 3,818 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,035,327.06. This represents a 3,135.59% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO John F. Rex bought 17,175 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 16th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $291.12 per share, for a total transaction of $4,999,986.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 203,796 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $59,329,091.52. The trade was a 9.20% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders purchased a total of 109,408 shares of company stock worth $31,607,768 over the last ninety days. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

UNH has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $510.00 to $356.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. StockNews.com upgraded UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $525.00 to $405.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. KeyCorp decreased their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $575.00 to $450.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res lowered UnitedHealth Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $441.87.

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.