UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) Given Average Recommendation of “Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) have earned a consensus rating of “Buy” from the twenty analysts that are covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $614.17.

UNH has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Baird R W upgraded UnitedHealth Group to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $546.00 to $601.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $640.00 to $680.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $555.00 to $615.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, HSBC increased their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $580.00 to $610.00 in a report on Thursday, July 18th.

UnitedHealth Group Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE:UNH opened at $575.00 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The company has a market capitalization of $529.22 billion, a PE ratio of 35.15, a P/E/G ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 0.58. UnitedHealth Group has a 12-month low of $436.38 and a 12-month high of $607.94. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $577.10 and its 200-day simple moving average is $521.14.

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

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 24th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th will be given a $2.10 dividend. This represents a $8.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 16th. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.34%.

Insider Activity at UnitedHealth Group

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On UnitedHealth Group

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in UNH. Macroview Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 671.4% in the 2nd quarter. Macroview Investment Management LLC now owns 54 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 757.1% during the first quarter. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 60 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares during the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC acquired a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the 2nd quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Signature Resources Capital Management LLC lifted its position in UnitedHealth Group by 40.0% in the second quarter. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC now owns 63 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 18 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.86% of the company’s stock.

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.