UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) have received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eighteen brokerages that are covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $570.05.

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on UNH shares. Bank of America reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $675.00 price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Thursday, March 7th. TD Cowen lowered their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $607.00 to $546.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $596.00 to $555.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $600.00 to $525.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $618.00 to $584.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 5th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,236 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 9,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,527,306.72. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.33% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On UnitedHealth Group

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cetera Advisors LLC increased its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 74.5% during the first quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC now owns 67,247 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $33,267,000 after acquiring an additional 28,718 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers grew its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 246.1% in the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 239,661 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $118,561,000 after purchasing an additional 170,417 shares during the period. Farallon Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 41.5% in the 1st quarter. Farallon Capital Management LLC now owns 1,701,410 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $841,688,000 after purchasing an additional 498,810 shares during the period. Community Trust & Investment Co. grew its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 1.2% in the 1st quarter. Community Trust & Investment Co. now owns 59,542 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $29,455,000 after purchasing an additional 735 shares during the period. Finally, Koesten Hirschmann & Crabtree INC. bought a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $49,000. 87.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Down 1.7 %

Shares of UNH stock opened at $508.17 on Tuesday. UnitedHealth Group has a 1 year low of $436.38 and a 1 year high of $554.70. The stock has a market cap of $467.71 billion, a PE ratio of 31.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 0.55. The business’s fifty day moving average is $489.23 and its 200-day moving average is $510.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.63 by $0.28. The business had revenue of $99.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $99.23 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.50% and a net margin of 4.05%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $6.26 EPS. Equities analysts expect that UnitedHealth Group will post 27.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.