UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) Trading Up 0.4% – Here’s What Happened

UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) rose 0.4% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $512.11 and last traded at $507.66. Approximately 724,400 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 82% from the average daily volume of 4,107,280 shares. The stock had previously closed at $505.86.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

UNH has been the subject of several analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $595.00 to $625.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Piper Sandler decreased their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $605.00 to $600.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. StockNews.com upgraded shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Hsbc Global Res cut shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $615.00 to $595.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $628.37.

UnitedHealth Group Trading Up 0.0 %

The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. The business has a 50 day moving average of $561.99 and a 200-day moving average of $560.42. The stock has a market cap of $465.76 billion, a PE ratio of 32.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 0.58.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.15 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.00 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $100.82 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $99.14 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 3.63% and a return on equity of 26.37%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $6.56 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.61 EPS for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 9th were given a $2.10 dividend. This represents a $8.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.66%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 9th. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 54.72%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On UnitedHealth Group

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in UnitedHealth Group during the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates increased its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 152.4% during the third quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 53 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. West Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in UnitedHealth Group in the third quarter valued at about $32,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in UnitedHealth Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, Quarry LP increased its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 132.1% in the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 65 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during 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.