Barclays Increases UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) Price Target to $560.00

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) had its price objective boosted by research analysts at Barclays from $534.00 to $560.00 in a note issued to investors on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “overweight” rating on the healthcare conglomerate’s stock. Barclays‘s target price indicates a potential upside of 13.55% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently commented on UNH. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $596.00 to $555.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Bank of America restated a “buy” rating and set a $675.00 price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Thursday, March 7th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $618.00 to $584.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 5th. Erste Group Bank reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Wednesday, March 13th. Finally, Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $610.00 target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Wednesday, January 17th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $569.68.

UnitedHealth Group Trading Up 3.0 %

Shares of NYSE UNH opened at $493.16 on Wednesday. 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 market cap of $454.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.14, a PEG ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 0.54. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $488.97 and its 200-day moving average price is $515.22. UnitedHealth Group has a fifty-two week low of $436.38 and a fifty-two week high of $554.70.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $99.23 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $6.26 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that UnitedHealth Group will post 27.75 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On UnitedHealth Group

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in UNH. Axiom Financial Strategies LLC acquired a new position in UnitedHealth Group in the 1st quarter worth about $210,000. McGowan Group Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 8.9% in the first quarter. McGowan Group Asset Management Inc. now owns 744 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $379,000 after buying an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 31.8% in the first quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 250,196 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $127,592,000 after acquiring an additional 60,300 shares during the last quarter. MAS Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 10.8% during the 1st quarter. MAS Advisors LLC now owns 463 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $241,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Western Trust Bank acquired a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the first quarter worth $875,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.86% of the company’s stock.

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.