Eastern Bank Sells 129,735 Shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated $UNH

Key Points

• Eastern Bank sold 129,735 shares of UnitedHealth Group, reducing its holdings by 86.7%, leaving it with 19,956 shares valued at $6.2 million.
• UnitedHealth Group reported $4.08 earnings per share for its last quarter, missing estimates, but its revenue was up 12.9% year-over-year at $111.62 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $2.21, yielding 2.5%, with a payout ratio of 38.3%.

Eastern Bank cut its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH - Free Report) by 86.7% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 19,956 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock after selling 129,735 shares during the period. Eastern Bank's holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $6,226,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bayforest Capital Ltd boosted its position in UnitedHealth Group by 685.7% in the 1st quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 55 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd boosted its position in UnitedHealth Group by 416.7% in the 1st quarter. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd now owns 62 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. IAG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 1st quarter valued at $42,000. O Brien Wealth Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 74.0% in the 1st quarter. O Brien Wealth Partners LLC now owns 87 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the period. Finally, Kentucky Trust Co lifted its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 138.5% in the 1st quarter. Kentucky Trust Co now owns 93 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the period. 87.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

UNH opened at $354.30 on Friday. The business's 50-day moving average price is $318.21 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $350.41. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 1 year low of $234.60 and a 1 year high of $630.73. The company has a market capitalization of $320.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.35, a P/E/G ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.85.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $4.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.45 by ($0.37). UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 5.04% and a return on equity of 23.32%. The firm had revenue of $111.62 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $111.75 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $6.80 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 12.9% compared to the same quarter last year. UnitedHealth Group has set its FY 2025 guidance at 16.000- EPS. Equities analysts expect that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 23rd. Investors of record on Monday, September 15th were given a $2.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 15th. This represents a $8.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.5%. UnitedHealth Group's payout ratio is currently 38.30%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $325.00 to $395.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, September 12th. Mizuho raised their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $300.00 to $430.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $379.00 to $433.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $310.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Bank of America raised their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $350.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, UnitedHealth Group presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $383.09.

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding UNH? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.