Cornerstone Advisors LLC Lowers Stock Position in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Key Points

• Cornerstone Advisors LLC has reduced its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 15.0%, now holding 43,103 shares after selling 7,600 shares.
• The company's recent quarterly earnings missed analyst estimates, reporting an EPS of $4.08 compared to the expected $4.45.
• UnitedHealth Group announced an increase in its quarterly dividend to $2.21 per share, representing a 3.5% dividend yield.

Cornerstone Advisors LLC cut its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH - Free Report) by 15.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 43,103 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock after selling 7,600 shares during the period. UnitedHealth Group comprises approximately 1.0% of Cornerstone Advisors LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest position. Cornerstone Advisors LLC's holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $22,575,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of UNH. Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Bayforest Capital Ltd boosted 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 during the last quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd bought a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. IAG Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 1st quarter valued at $42,000. Finally, Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda bought a new stake in UnitedHealth Group during the fourth quarter valued at $41,000. 87.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other UnitedHealth Group news, CEO Patrick Hugh Conway sold 589 shares of UnitedHealth Group stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $305.00, for a total transaction of $179,645.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 10,398 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,171,390. The trade was a 5.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Stephen J. Hemsley purchased 86,700 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 16th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $288.57 per share, with a total value of $25,019,019.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer owned 679,493 shares in the company, valued at $196,081,295.01. This trade represents a 14.63% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have purchased 109,408 shares of company stock worth $31,607,768. Insiders own 0.28% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on UNH shares. HSBC reaffirmed a "reduce" rating and set a $270.00 target price (down previously from $490.00) on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Piper Sandler dropped their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $353.00 to $317.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $355.00 to $286.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $563.00 to $374.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res downgraded UnitedHealth Group from a "hold" rating to a "moderate sell" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, UnitedHealth Group presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $366.52.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

UNH stock traded down $1.37 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $244.42. 11,331,473 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 18,403,832. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 52-week low of $234.60 and a 52-week high of $630.73. The stock's 50-day moving average is $292.78 and its 200 day moving average is $408.71. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. The stock has a market cap of $221.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.59, a PEG ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.43.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $4.08 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $4.45 by ($0.37). The firm had revenue of $111.62 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $111.75 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 5.04% and a return on equity of 23.32%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 12.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $6.80 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.54 EPS for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 24th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 16th were paid a $2.21 dividend. This represents a $8.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 16th. This is a positive change from UnitedHealth Group's previous quarterly dividend of $2.10. UnitedHealth Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 38.30%.

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.