Equities Analysts Issue Forecasts for UNH FY2025 Earnings

Key Points

• Cantor Fitzgerald has revised its FY2025 earnings per share estimate for UnitedHealth Group down to $16.01, significantly lower than the previous estimate of $23.01.
• UnitedHealth Group missed the consensus EPS estimate for the last quarter, reporting $4.08 instead of the anticipated $4.45.
• Despite their recent earnings challenges, UnitedHealth announced a quarterly dividend increase, raising it to $2.21 per share, reflecting a 3.5% yield.

UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH - Free Report) - Stock analysts at Cantor Fitzgerald lowered their FY2025 earnings estimates for UnitedHealth Group in a research report issued on Wednesday, July 30th. Cantor Fitzgerald analyst S. James now forecasts that the healthcare conglomerate will post earnings per share of $16.01 for the year, down from their previous forecast of $23.01. The consensus estimate for UnitedHealth Group's current full-year earnings is $29.54 per share. Cantor Fitzgerald also issued estimates for UnitedHealth Group's FY2026 earnings at $17.09 EPS.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $4.08 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.45 by ($0.37). UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 5.04% and a return on equity of 23.32%. The business had revenue of $111.62 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $111.75 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $6.80 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 12.9% compared to the same quarter last year.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Baird R W lowered shares of UnitedHealth Group from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $351.00 to $306.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Piper Sandler decreased their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $353.00 to $317.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Wolfe Research decreased their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $501.00 to $390.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. Finally, Argus cut shares of UnitedHealth Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, April 21st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $373.52.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Down 4.9%

Shares of NYSE UNH traded down $12.16 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $237.40. The company's stock had a trading volume of 39,874,177 shares, compared to its average volume of 15,268,949. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $296.86 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $416.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.85. UnitedHealth Group has a 1 year low of $234.60 and a 1 year high of $630.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $215.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 0.43.

UnitedHealth Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 24th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 16th were issued a $2.21 dividend. This is a positive change from UnitedHealth Group's previous quarterly dividend of $2.10. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 16th. This represents a $8.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.7%. UnitedHealth Group's payout ratio is currently 37.02%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other UnitedHealth Group news, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn bought 1,533 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 14th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $320.80 per share, with a total value of $491,786.40. Following the transaction, the director owned 6,033 shares in the company, valued at $1,935,386.40. This trade represents a 34.07% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO John F. Rex bought 17,175 shares of UnitedHealth Group stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 16th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $291.12 per share, with a total value of $4,999,986.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief financial officer owned 203,796 shares in the company, valued at approximately $59,329,091.52. The trade was a 9.20% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders bought 109,408 shares of company stock worth $31,607,768 in the last 90 days. 0.28% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On UnitedHealth Group

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in UnitedHealth Group in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Hurley Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Bayforest Capital Ltd increased its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 685.7% during the first quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 55 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the period. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd acquired a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd increased its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 416.7% during the first quarter. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd now owns 62 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. 87.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.