Hemenway Trust Co LLC Grows Stake in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Hemenway Trust Co LLC lifted its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 1.8% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 50,755 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after purchasing an additional 898 shares during the period. UnitedHealth Group comprises 2.2% of Hemenway Trust Co LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest position. Hemenway Trust Co LLC’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $25,848,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of UNH. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its position in UnitedHealth Group by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 4,468 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $2,352,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Aveo Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 23.8% in the 4th quarter. Aveo Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,164 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,139,000 after purchasing an additional 416 shares during the last quarter. 9258 Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 7.3% in the 4th quarter. 9258 Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,273 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $2,250,000 after purchasing an additional 290 shares during the last quarter. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC boosted its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 80.9% in the 4th quarter. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC now owns 6,220 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $3,275,000 after purchasing an additional 2,782 shares during the last quarter. Finally, TimesSquare Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $500,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.86% of the company’s stock.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

Shares of UnitedHealth Group stock traded down $0.77 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $594.72. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 281,263 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,055,568. The stock has a market cap of $549.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 0.58. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a one year low of $436.38 and a one year high of $607.94. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $557.22 and its 200 day simple moving average is $514.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.88.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.66 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $98.86 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 for the quarter was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $6.14 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 24th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 16th will be paid a dividend of $2.10 per share. This represents a $8.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.41%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 16th. UnitedHealth Group’s payout ratio is currently 51.34%.

Insider Buying and Selling at UnitedHealth Group

In related news, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $579.03, for a total value of $868,545.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 7,785 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,507,748.55. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, CAO Thomas E. Roos sold 2,851 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 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 UnitedHealth Group stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $579.03, for a total transaction of $868,545.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 7,785 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,507,748.55. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

UNH has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Baird R W upgraded shares of UnitedHealth Group to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 30th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $591.00 price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Monday, August 19th. TD Cowen upped 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. HSBC upped their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $580.00 to $610.00 in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Finally, Argus increased their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $570.00 to $600.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, UnitedHealth Group currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $614.17.

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.