Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. Purchases 2,929 Shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH - Free Report) by 2.5% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 118,560 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock after acquiring an additional 2,929 shares during the quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc.'s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $62,096,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Financial Management Professionals Inc. boosted its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 0.8% during the first 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 in the last quarter. Richwood Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Richwood Investment Advisors LLC now owns 5,247 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $2,654,000 after buying an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates lifted its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 28.6% in the first quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 90 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Prentice Wealth Management LLC lifted 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 valued at $1,278,000 after buying an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. Finally, 44 Wealth Management LLC lifted 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 valued at $662,000 after buying an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. 87.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

UnitedHealth Group Trading Down 1.7%

Shares of UnitedHealth Group stock opened at $302.04 on Friday. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 1 year low of $248.88 and a 1 year high of $630.73. The firm has a market cap of $273.99 billion, a PE ratio of 12.65, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $359.15 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $462.77.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.29 by ($0.09). UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 5.39% and a return on equity of 26.29%. The company had revenue of $109.58 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $111.56 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $6.91 earnings per share. Analysts expect that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 24th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be issued a $2.21 dividend. This represents a $8.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.93%. This is a positive change from UnitedHealth Group's previous quarterly dividend of $2.10. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. UnitedHealth Group's payout ratio is presently 37.02%.

Insider Transactions at UnitedHealth Group

In other UnitedHealth Group news, CEO Stephen J. Hemsley acquired 86,700 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 16th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $288.57 per share, for a total transaction of $25,019,019.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 679,493 shares in the company, valued at $196,081,295.01. The trade was a 14.63% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director John H. Noseworthy acquired 300 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 14th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $312.16 per share, with a total value of $93,648.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 6,063 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,892,626.08. The trade was a 5.21% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders acquired 109,408 shares of company stock worth $31,607,768. 0.28% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

UNH has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Truist Financial reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $360.00 price objective (down from $580.00) on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Monday, May 19th. TD Cowen lowered shares of UnitedHealth Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $308.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Robert W. Baird downgraded shares of UnitedHealth Group from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $312.00 target price for the company. in a report on Wednesday, June 11th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $563.00 to $374.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $521.00 to $362.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $427.09.

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.

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