Mechanics Financial Corp Reduces Stock Position in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Mechanics Financial Corp cut its stake in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 3,121 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after selling 57 shares during the period. UnitedHealth Group comprises 0.8% of Mechanics Financial Corp’s portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest position. Mechanics Financial Corp’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $1,825,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in UNH. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 78,814.4% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 5,296,737 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $3,096,896,000 after purchasing an additional 5,290,025 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB acquired a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,117,462,000. Lone Pine Capital LLC bought a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the second quarter worth $480,903,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 30.0% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,816,254 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,942,956,000 after purchasing an additional 880,183 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Baillie Gifford & Co. lifted its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 1,125.4% in the 2nd quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 894,006 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $455,281,000 after buying an additional 821,050 shares during the last quarter. 87.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on UNH. Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $615.00 to $595.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Barclays lowered their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $604.00 to $603.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. TD Cowen boosted their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $601.00 to $609.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Bank of America cut their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $675.00 to $650.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $591.00 to $644.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $615.53.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

Shares of UNH opened at $592.23 on Friday. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 12-month low of $436.38 and a 12-month high of $630.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $545.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.58, a P/E/G ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 0.58. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $582.84 and its 200-day moving average is $549.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.91.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 15th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.15 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.00 by $0.15. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.37% and a net margin of 3.63%. The company had revenue of $100.82 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $99.14 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $6.56 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 9th will be given a dividend of $2.10 per share. This represents a $8.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 9th. UnitedHealth Group’s payout ratio is 54.72%.

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.