UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) Shares Sold by Northern Financial Advisors Inc

Northern Financial Advisors Inc cut its position in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 5.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,931 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after selling 174 shares during the period. UnitedHealth Group accounts for 1.3% of Northern Financial Advisors Inc’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest holding. Northern Financial Advisors Inc’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $1,535,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Hurley Capital LLC purchased a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. IAG Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the 1st quarter worth $42,000. Finally, Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda acquired a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter worth $41,000. 87.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently commented on UNH. Mizuho reduced their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $515.00 to $350.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $521.00 to $362.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Argus cut shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $563.00 to $374.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, TD Securities reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $308.00 price objective (down previously from $520.00) on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Monday, May 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, UnitedHealth Group presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $394.43.

UnitedHealth Group Price Performance

UnitedHealth Group stock opened at $292.40 on Thursday. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 1 year low of $248.88 and a 1 year high of $630.73. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $301.70 and a 200 day moving average price of $428.82. The company has a market cap of $265.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.24, a PEG ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85.

UnitedHealth Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 24th. Investors of record on Monday, June 16th were issued a $2.21 dividend. This represents a $8.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.02%. This is an increase from UnitedHealth Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.10. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 16th. UnitedHealth Group’s payout ratio is presently 37.02%.

Insider Activity at UnitedHealth Group

In other UnitedHealth Group news, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn acquired 1,533 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 14th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $320.80 per share, for a total transaction of $491,786.40. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 6,033 shares in the company, valued at $1,935,386.40. This represents a 34.07% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Stephen J. Hemsley bought 86,700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 16th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $288.57 per share, with a total value of $25,019,019.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 679,493 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $196,081,295.01. This trade represents a 14.63% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders bought 109,408 shares of company stock valued at $31,607,768 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

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.