Baird Financial Group Inc. Acquires 21,826 Shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated $UNH

Key Points

• Baird Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 5.2%, bringing its total holdings to $229.39 million with 437,977 shares owned.
• UnitedHealth Group recently reported $4.08 earnings per share for the last quarter, missing analysts' expectations, with revenue hitting $111.62 billion, a 12.9% year-over-year increase.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $2.21, which is set to be paid on September 23rd, representing an annualized dividend yield of 2.9%.

Baird Financial Group Inc. increased its position in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH - Free Report) by 5.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 437,977 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock after purchasing an additional 21,826 shares during the quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc.'s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $229,391,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Bayforest Capital Ltd raised its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 685.7% in the first quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 55 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd raised its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 416.7% in the first quarter. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd now owns 62 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. IAG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in UnitedHealth Group in the first quarter valued at $42,000. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda acquired a new stake in UnitedHealth Group in the fourth quarter valued at $41,000. Finally, Copia Wealth Management bought a new stake in UnitedHealth Group during the fourth quarter valued at $42,000. 87.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $440.00 target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Tuesday, August 26th. TD Securities reiterated a "hold" rating and set a $308.00 target price (down previously from $520.00) on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Oppenheimer lowered their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $400.00 to $325.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $290.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, August 18th. Finally, Wolfe Research lowered 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 report on Tuesday, May 20th. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, UnitedHealth Group currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $353.00.

UnitedHealth Group Price Performance

UNH traded up $7.48 on Monday, reaching $309.77. The company had a trading volume of 12,018,847 shares, compared to its average volume of 18,891,168. The company has a fifty day moving average of $288.16 and a 200-day moving average of $379.63. The company has a market capitalization of $280.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.42, a PEG ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.44. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a one year low of $234.60 and a one year high of $630.73.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $4.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $4.45 by ($0.37). The company had revenue of $111.62 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $111.75 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 5.04% and a return on equity of 23.32%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 12.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $6.80 EPS. UnitedHealth Group has set its FY 2025 guidance at 16.000- EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.54 earnings per share for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 23rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be given a $2.21 dividend. This represents a $8.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. UnitedHealth Group's dividend payout ratio is 38.30%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Patrick Hugh Conway sold 589 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $305.00, for a total value of $179,645.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 10,398 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,171,390. This represents a 5.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.28% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.