Van ECK Associates Corp Raises Holdings in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 6.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 143,228 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after buying an additional 9,159 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $75,405,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in UNH. Richelieu Gestion SA bought a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Robbins Farley acquired a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. CGC Financial Services LLC raised its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 1,000.0% in the fourth quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 55 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 340.0% during the third quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 66 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Finally, LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA boosted its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 148.1% in the 4th quarter. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA now owns 67 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. 87.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

UnitedHealth Group Trading Down 1.2 %

Shares of NYSE UNH traded down $5.81 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $483.22. 720,698 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,434,075. The stock has a market capitalization of $444.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.63, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.54. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a twelve month low of $436.38 and a twelve month high of $554.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.85. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $485.19 and a 200 day simple moving average of $513.81.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.63 by $0.28. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 4.05% and a return on equity of 26.50%. The firm had revenue of $99.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $99.23 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $6.26 EPS. UnitedHealth Group’s revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.61 earnings per share for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 11th were paid a dividend of $1.88 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 8th. This represents a $7.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.56%. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 45.97%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Thomas E. Roos sold 858 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $525.79, for a total transaction of $451,127.82. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 32,289 shares in the company, valued at $16,977,233.31. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, CAO Thomas E. Roos sold 858 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $525.79, for a total transaction of $451,127.82. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 32,289 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,977,233.31. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,236 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $483.48, for a total transaction of $597,581.28. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 9,364 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,527,306.72. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.35% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on UNH shares. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $596.00 to $555.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Erste Group Bank reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $545.00 to $562.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 19th. TD Cowen cut their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $607.00 to $546.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $534.00 to $560.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, UnitedHealth Group presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $570.05.

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.