BDF Gestion Has $17.79 Million Holdings in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

BDF Gestion raised its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH - Free Report) by 13.0% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 33,970 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock after purchasing an additional 3,920 shares during the quarter. UnitedHealth Group accounts for about 1.9% of BDF Gestion's holdings, making the stock its 8th biggest holding. BDF Gestion's holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $17,792,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of UNH. Financial Management Professionals Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 0.8% in the 1st quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. now owns 2,224 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $1,165,000 after acquiring an additional 17 shares during the last quarter. Richwood Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Richwood Investment Advisors LLC now owns 5,247 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $2,654,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates lifted its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 28.6% in the 1st quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 90 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. 44 Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. 44 Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,309 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $662,000 after buying an additional 21 shares during the period. Finally, Prentice Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Prentice Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,527 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $1,278,000 after buying an additional 21 shares during the period. 87.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Down 1.6%

NYSE:UNH opened at $313.39 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $284.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.22, a P/E/G ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.83. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $248.88 and a fifty-two week high of $630.73. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $386.66 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $472.32.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 17th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.20 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $7.29 by ($0.09). The firm had revenue of $109.58 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $111.56 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 3.60% and a return on equity of 26.69%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $6.91 earnings per share. Analysts predict that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 24th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be issued a dividend of $2.21 per share. This represents a $8.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.82%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 16th. This is an increase from UnitedHealth Group's previous quarterly dividend of $2.10. UnitedHealth Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.02%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently commented on UNH. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $525.00 to $355.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 16th. TD Securities reaffirmed a "hold" rating and issued a $308.00 target price (down from $520.00) on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Erste Group Bank downgraded shares of UnitedHealth Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of UnitedHealth Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 24th. Finally, HSBC reissued a "reduce" rating and set a $270.00 price objective (down from $490.00) on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $426.52.

Insider Activity

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

UnitedHealth Group 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.

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