UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) Rating Lowered to “Hold” at StockNews.com

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) was downgraded by stock analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued on Wednesday.

A number of other brokerages also recently issued reports on UNH. UBS Group decreased their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $680.00 to $650.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Barclays lowered their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $604.00 to $603.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Stephens reduced their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $632.00 to $605.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. TD Cowen raised their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $601.00 to $609.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $615.00 to $595.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $615.53.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

Shares of UNH stock opened at $597.56 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $582.70 and its 200-day moving average price is $551.92. UnitedHealth Group has a one year low of $436.38 and a one year high of $630.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.91. The firm has a market cap of $549.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.93, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.58.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.15 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $7.00 by $0.15. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.37% and a net margin of 3.63%. The firm had revenue of $100.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $99.14 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $6.56 EPS. UnitedHealth Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that UnitedHealth Group will post 27.6 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On UnitedHealth Group

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 78,814.4% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 5,296,737 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $3,096,896,000 after acquiring an additional 5,290,025 shares during the last quarter. Swedbank AB bought a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the first quarter valued at approximately $1,117,462,000. Lone Pine Capital LLC bought a new stake in UnitedHealth Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $480,903,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in UnitedHealth Group by 30.0% during the 2nd 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. boosted its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 1,125.4% in the second quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 894,006 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $455,281,000 after acquiring an additional 821,050 shares in the last quarter. 87.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.