UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) Trading Up 1.2% – Here’s What Happened

UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) shares rose 1.2% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $310.68 and last traded at $306.96. Approximately 6,146,331 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 52% from the average daily volume of 12,813,095 shares. The stock had previously closed at $303.35.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

UNH has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. HSBC reissued a “reduce” rating and set a $270.00 target price (down previously from $490.00) on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. TD Cowen downgraded UnitedHealth Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $308.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Mizuho decreased their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $515.00 to $350.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Baird R W downgraded UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut 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. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $365.38.

UnitedHealth Group Trading Up 1.2%

The stock has a market cap of $278.13 billion, a PE ratio of 13.31, a PEG ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $288.39 and a 200 day moving average price of $388.53.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $4.08 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.45 by ($0.37). The company had revenue of $111.62 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $111.75 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 23.32% and a net margin of 5.04%.UnitedHealth Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $6.80 EPS. UnitedHealth Group has set its FY 2025 guidance at 16.000- EPS. Equities analysts expect that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.54 EPS for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 23rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be issued a $2.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $8.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. UnitedHealth Group’s payout ratio is 38.30%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Patrick Hugh Conway sold 589 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $305.00, for a total transaction of $179,645.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 10,398 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,171,390. This trade represents a 5.36% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On UnitedHealth Group

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 6.6% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 90,729,585 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $47,519,620,000 after acquiring an additional 5,583,343 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in UnitedHealth Group by 10.6% during the 1st quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 25,847,940 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $13,537,859,000 after purchasing an additional 2,486,839 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 3.3% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 21,312,182 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $6,624,411,000 after acquiring an additional 675,075 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 2nd quarter worth $3,837,207,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its position 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 acquiring an additional 1,058,488 shares in the last quarter. 87.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.