Webster Bank N. A. Acquires 71 Shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Webster Bank N. A. increased its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 3.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,982 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after acquiring an additional 71 shares during the quarter. Webster Bank N. A.’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $1,003,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. bought a new position in UnitedHealth Group in the third quarter worth approximately $27,000. AlphaMark Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates raised its holdings in 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 buying an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. West Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the third quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Quarry LP lifted its position in UnitedHealth Group by 132.1% in the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 65 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.86% of the company’s stock.

UnitedHealth Group Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of UnitedHealth Group stock opened at $532.26 on Monday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $541.04 and its 200-day moving average price is $564.79. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. The company has a market cap of $489.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.34, a PEG ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 0.62. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 12-month low of $436.38 and a 12-month high of $630.73.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.74 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $100.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $101.60 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.69% and a net margin of 3.60%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $5.83 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Investors of record on Monday, December 9th were paid a $2.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 9th. This represents a $8.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.58%. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 54.19%.

Insider Activity

In other UnitedHealth Group news, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn purchased 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 17th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $511.57 per share, for a total transaction of $511,570.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,302,065. This represents a 28.57 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. KeyCorp restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $650.00 target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Friday, January 17th. Oppenheimer upped their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $610.00 to $640.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Bank of America cut their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $675.00 to $650.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Stephens lifted their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $605.00 to $675.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $615.00 to $595.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have issued 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 “Buy” and a consensus target price of $627.74.

UnitedHealth Group Company Profile

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.