UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) Stock Price Down 0.1%

UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) was down 0.1% on Monday . The company traded as low as $593.44 and last traded at $593.44. Approximately 340,804 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 92% from the average daily volume of 4,022,583 shares. The stock had previously closed at $594.32.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

UNH has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Barclays increased their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $560.00 to $604.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $546.00 to $601.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $481.00 to $647.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $555.00 to $615.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, Truist Financial raised their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $600.00 to $640.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $614.17.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $572.79 and its 200 day moving average price is $519.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.88. The firm has a market cap of $535.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 0.58.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.80 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.66 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $98.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $98.73 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.55% and a net margin of 3.66%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $6.14 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.69 EPS for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 24th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 16th will be paid a $2.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 16th. This represents a $8.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.45%. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio is 51.34%.

Insider Buying and Selling at UnitedHealth Group

In related news, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,500 shares of UnitedHealth Group stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $579.03, for a total transaction of $868,545.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 7,785 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,507,748.55. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, CAO Thomas E. Roos sold 2,851 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $569.88, for a total transaction of $1,624,727.88. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 29,501 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,812,029.88. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $579.03, for a total transaction of $868,545.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 7,785 shares in the company, valued at $4,507,748.55. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On UnitedHealth Group

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Swedbank AB bought a new position in UnitedHealth Group in the first quarter valued at about $1,117,462,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its position in UnitedHealth Group by 107.8% in the 1st quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 2,306,729 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,141,113,000 after acquiring an additional 1,196,758 shares during the period. Lone Pine Capital LLC bought a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the 2nd quarter worth $480,903,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 30.0% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,816,254 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $1,942,956,000 after acquiring an additional 880,183 shares during the period. Finally, Baillie Gifford & Co. raised its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 1,125.4% during the 2nd quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 894,006 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $455,281,000 after purchasing an additional 821,050 shares during the last quarter. 87.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About UnitedHealth Group

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.