UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) Shares Up 5.2% After Earnings Beat

UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) shot up 5.2% during mid-day trading on Wednesday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The company traded as high as $479.75 and last traded at $468.89. 11,816,517 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 178% from the average session volume of 4,248,641 shares. The stock had previously closed at $445.63.

The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.63 by $0.28. The company had revenue of $99.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $99.23 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.50% and a net margin of 4.05%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $6.26 EPS.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 11th were given a dividend of $1.88 per share. This represents a $7.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.52%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 8th. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 45.97%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

UNH has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $618.00 to $584.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 5th. StockNews.com cut UnitedHealth Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday. Oppenheimer restated an “outperform” rating and set a $610.00 target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Wednesday, January 17th. Erste Group Bank reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Wednesday, March 13th. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $534.00 to $560.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $569.68.

Insider Activity

In other 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 transaction of $451,127.82. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 32,289 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,977,233.31. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,236 shares of UnitedHealth Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $483.48, for a total value of $597,581.28. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 9,364 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,527,306.72. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, 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 transaction of $451,127.82. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 32,289 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,977,233.31. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On UnitedHealth Group

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Ascension Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the third quarter worth $216,000. Bellecapital International Ltd. grew its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Bellecapital International Ltd. now owns 13,823 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $7,277,000 after acquiring an additional 193 shares in the last quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 5.8% in the third quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. now owns 34,297 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $17,292,000 after acquiring an additional 1,884 shares in the last quarter. Rise Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 326.0% during the fourth quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 213 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $112,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Gradient Investments LLC grew its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 6.3% during the fourth quarter. Gradient Investments LLC now owns 84,278 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $44,370,000 after purchasing an additional 5,023 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.86% of the company’s stock.

UnitedHealth Group Trading Up 3.0 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.79. The business’s 50 day moving average is $488.97 and its 200 day moving average is $515.22. The stock has a market cap of $454.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.14, a P/E/G ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 0.54.

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.