Heartland Bank & Trust Co Grows Stock Position in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Heartland Bank & Trust Co raised its holdings in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 17.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 3,767 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after purchasing an additional 558 shares during the period. UnitedHealth Group accounts for approximately 1.0% of Heartland Bank & Trust Co’s portfolio, making the stock its 20th largest holding. Heartland Bank & Trust Co’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $1,973,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of UNH. NewSquare Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Hurley Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Promus Capital LLC purchased a new stake in UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. 87.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

UnitedHealth Group Trading Down 1.7%

Shares of UnitedHealth Group stock opened at $302.04 on Friday. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $248.88 and a fifty-two week high of $630.73. The firm has a market cap of $273.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.44. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $359.15 and a 200-day simple moving average of $462.77. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.20 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.29 by ($0.09). UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.29% and a net margin of 5.39%. The company had revenue of $109.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $111.56 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $6.91 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 24th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be paid a dividend of $2.21 per share. This is a positive change from UnitedHealth Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.10. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 16th. This represents a $8.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.93%. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio is 37.02%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently issued reports on UNH. Mizuho decreased their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $515.00 to $350.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $521.00 to $362.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Oppenheimer decreased their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $600.00 to $400.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Piper Sandler dropped their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $552.00 to $353.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, June 3rd. Finally, Argus downgraded shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, April 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, UnitedHealth Group has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $427.09.

Insider Activity at UnitedHealth Group

In related news, CEO Stephen J. Hemsley acquired 86,700 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 16th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $288.57 per share, with a total value of $25,019,019.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 679,493 shares in the company, valued at approximately $196,081,295.01. The trade was a 14.63% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO John F. Rex bought 17,175 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 16th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $291.12 per share, with a total value 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 approximately $59,329,091.52. This trade represents a 9.20% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders acquired 109,408 shares of company stock valued at $31,607,768. Insiders own 0.28% 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.