Centaurus Financial Inc. Lowers Holdings in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated $UNH

Key Points

• Centaurus Financial Inc. cut its stake in UnitedHealth by 52.6% in Q3, selling 8,390 shares and ending with 7,568 shares valued at $2.613 million.
• Several analysts have reduced price targets recently (e.g., RBC $408→$361, JPMorgan $425→$389), but the stock holds a consensus "Moderate Buy" rating with an average target of $372.13.
• UnitedHealth slightly beat quarterly estimates with $2.11 EPS vs $2.09 expected and $113.73 billion revenue, and it pays a quarterly dividend of $2.21 (annualized yield ~3.1%).

Centaurus Financial Inc. cut its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH - Free Report) by 52.6% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,568 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock after selling 8,390 shares during the period. Centaurus Financial Inc.'s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $2,613,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Foster Dykema Cabot & Partners LLC grew its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 69.4% during the 3rd quarter. Foster Dykema Cabot & Partners LLC now owns 83 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. 1248 Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Hurley Capital LLC increased its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 81.6% during the third quarter. Hurley Capital LLC now owns 89 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the period. Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in UnitedHealth Group during the third quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Sagard Holdings Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 2nd quarter valued at $29,000. 87.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on UNH shares. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $408.00 to $361.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Sanford C. Bernstein restated an "outperform" rating on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of UnitedHealth Group from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. KeyCorp restated an "overweight" rating on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $425.00 to $389.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $372.13.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

Shares of UNH opened at $284.03 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $299.84 and a two-hundred day moving average of $324.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.79. The stock has a market cap of $257.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.53, a P/E/G ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 0.41. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a one year low of $234.60 and a one year high of $606.36.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 27th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $2.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.09 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $113.73 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $113.38 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 14.79% and a net margin of 2.69%.The company's revenue for the quarter was up 12.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $6.81 earnings per share. UnitedHealth Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 17.750- EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.54 EPS for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 9th were paid a $2.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 9th. This represents a $8.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.1%. UnitedHealth Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 67.02%.

About UnitedHealth Group

UnitedHealth Group Inc is a diversified health care company headquartered in Minnetonka, Minnesota, that operates two primary business platforms: UnitedHealthcare and Optum. Founded in 1977, the company provides a broad range of health benefits and health care services to individuals, employers, governmental entities and other organizations. Its operations span commercial employer-sponsored plans, individual and Medicare and Medicaid programs, and services for customers and health systems in the United States and selected international markets.

UnitedHealthcare is the company's benefits business, administering health plans and networks, managing provider relationships, and offering coverage products for employers, individuals, and government-sponsored programs.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.