Cullen Investment Group LTD. Buys 4,663 Shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Cullen Investment Group LTD. increased its stake in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH - Free Report) by 79.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 10,569 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock after purchasing an additional 4,663 shares during the period. Cullen Investment Group LTD.'s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $5,535,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Western Pacific Wealth Management LP lifted its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Western Pacific Wealth Management LP now owns 902 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $456,000 after acquiring an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. Axiom Financial Strategies LLC raised its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Axiom Financial Strategies LLC now owns 575 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $291,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. Richwood Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Richwood Investment Advisors LLC now owns 5,247 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $2,654,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. Prentice Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Prentice Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,527 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $1,278,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the period. Finally, 44 Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 1.6% in the 4th 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 in the last quarter. 87.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on UNH. Hsbc Global Res lowered UnitedHealth Group from a "hold" rating to a "moderate sell" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Mizuho decreased their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $515.00 to $350.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 16th. HSBC reaffirmed a "reduce" rating and set a $270.00 price target (down from $490.00) on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Barclays cut their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $513.00 to $362.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. Finally, Argus downgraded UnitedHealth Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, April 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, UnitedHealth Group presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $441.87.

UnitedHealth Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:UNH traded down $0.01 during trading on Thursday, reaching $298.11. The stock had a trading volume of 16,213,440 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,743,288. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 52 week low of $248.88 and a 52 week high of $630.73. The business's 50-day moving average price is $435.12 and its 200 day moving average price is $496.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.91. The stock has a market capitalization of $270.42 billion, a PE ratio of 19.23, a P/E/G ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.56.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn purchased 1,533 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 14th. The stock was bought at an average price of $320.80 per share, with a total value of $491,786.40. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 6,033 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,935,386.40. This represents a 34.07% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Stephen J. Hemsley bought 86,700 shares of UnitedHealth Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 16th. The stock was bought 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 now owns 679,493 shares in the company, valued at approximately $196,081,295.01. This trade represents a 14.63% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders acquired 109,408 shares of company stock valued at $31,607,768. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

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.