UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) Shares Sold by Jupiter Asset Management Ltd.

Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. trimmed its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 17.3% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 23,844 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after selling 5,001 shares during the quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd.’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $11,796,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of UNH. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 83,860,515 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $44,150,045,000 after acquiring an additional 250,291 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors grew its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 15,122,203 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $7,961,369,000 after acquiring an additional 324,733 shares during the period. Capital International Investors grew its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 4.8% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 11,860,985 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $6,244,158,000 after acquiring an additional 542,424 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter valued at $5,802,231,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,984,853 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $3,143,004,000 after purchasing an additional 141,646 shares during the period. 87.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

Shares of UNH stock traded up $0.99 during trading on Friday, reaching $565.33. The company had a trading volume of 4,290,440 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,386,945. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $504.56 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $500.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.85. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a one year low of $436.38 and a one year high of $581.50. The company has a market capitalization of $520.32 billion, a PE ratio of 34.56, a PEG ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 0.60.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.80 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.66 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $98.86 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $98.73 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.55% and a net margin of 3.66%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $6.14 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.68 earnings per share for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 25th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 17th were given a $2.10 dividend. This is an increase from UnitedHealth Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.88. This represents a $8.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 17th. UnitedHealth Group’s payout ratio is currently 51.34%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. TD Cowen increased their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $546.00 to $601.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $591.00 price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Wednesday. UBS Group raised their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $640.00 to $680.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. HSBC raised their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $580.00 to $610.00 in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Argus raised their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $570.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $614.17.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Thomas E. Roos sold 2,851 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $569.88, for a total transaction of $1,624,727.88. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 29,501 shares in the company, valued at $16,812,029.88. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $579.03, for a total value of $868,545.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 7,785 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,507,748.55. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CAO Thomas E. Roos sold 2,851 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $569.88, for a total value of $1,624,727.88. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 29,501 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,812,029.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

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.