Jennison Associates LLC Buys 5,420 Shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated $UNH

Key Points

• Jennison Associates LLC increased its stake in UnitedHealth by 1.3%, buying 5,420 shares to hold 415,600 shares valued at about $137.19 million as of the latest 13F filing.
• UnitedHealth posted a strong Q1 (EPS $7.23 vs. $6.76 expected; revenue $111.65B vs. $109.84B), set FY2026 guidance of $18.25 EPS, and announced strategic moves like the Alegeus acquisition, prompting multiple analyst price-target increases and a MarketBeat consensus of a Moderate Buy (avg. PT $378.88).
• Institutional ownership is high at 87.86%; insiders own 0.28% and CEO Patrick Conway sold 800 shares on April 23 for about $284,000, while the company pays a $2.21 quarterly dividend (annualized $8.84, ~2.4% yield).

Jennison Associates LLC increased its holdings in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH - Free Report) by 1.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 415,600 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock after purchasing an additional 5,420 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC's holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $137,194,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 176.2% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 44,249 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $22,384,000 after acquiring an additional 28,231 shares in the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC raised its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 137.1% during the 4th quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 4,019 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $2,033,000 after buying an additional 2,324 shares during the period. CMT Capital Markets Trading GmbH purchased a new stake in UnitedHealth Group during the 2nd quarter valued at $340,000. Flow Traders U.S. LLC purchased a new stake in UnitedHealth Group during the 2nd quarter valued at $356,000. Finally, Jump Financial LLC purchased a new stake in UnitedHealth Group during the 2nd quarter valued at $377,000. 87.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. Barclays increased their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $327.00 to $373.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Evercore raised UnitedHealth Group to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. UBS Group cut their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $430.00 to $410.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. HSBC raised UnitedHealth Group from a "reduce" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $300.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $370.00 to $397.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have assigned a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $378.88.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Patrick Hugh Conway sold 800 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $355.00, for a total transaction of $284,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 17,805 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,320,775. This trade represents a 4.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.28% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Key UnitedHealth Group News

Here are the key news stories impacting UnitedHealth Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Company posted a strong Q1 with margin improvement and an upgraded outlook, which investors view as evidence the turnaround is underway. UnitedHealth Stock Surges on Q1
• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan raised its price target and kept an overweight stance, underpinning upside expectations from Wall Street. JPMorgan PT Raise
• Positive Sentiment: Erste Group increased its FY2026–FY2027 EPS estimates, signaling improving analyst confidence in earnings recovery.
• Positive Sentiment: UnitedHealth agreed to acquire Alegeus (benefits/consumer-directed accounts tech), aligning with management’s push into benefits technology and digital services — a strategic growth lever. Alegeus Acquisition
• Positive Sentiment: Management highlighted pricing discipline, digital adoption and operational fixes on the Q1 call — factors that could sustain margin improvement going forward. Q1 Earnings Call Takeaways
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple bullish commentaries and analyst pieces argue UNH may be at the start of a comeback, supporting positive investor sentiment. Bullish Opinion Piece
• Neutral Sentiment: UNH is a trending stock on retail/analyst screens — increased attention can boost volume but doesn’t guarantee directional conviction. Zacks Trending Note
• Neutral Sentiment: Macro/sector commentary (e.g., Jim Cramer suggesting healthcare as a defensive hedge) can attract allocation flows into the sector broadly but is not UNH-specific. Jim Cramer Healthcare Note
• Negative Sentiment: Peer strength: Humana and Centene reported beats/strong premiums this quarter — investor appetite for other insurers' outperformance could limit UNH’s relative rerating. Humana Q1 Beat Centene / Einhorn
• Negative Sentiment: Relative valuation pressure: CVS is trading at a much lower forward multiple, and narrative around CVS’s improving outlook could divert value-focused investors away from UNH. CVS Valuation Article

UnitedHealth Group Trading Down 1.3%

UnitedHealth Group stock opened at $366.08 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $297.82 and a two-hundred day moving average of $317.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.80. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a one year low of $234.60 and a one year high of $411.99. The stock has a market cap of $332.48 billion, a PE ratio of 27.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 0.40.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.23 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $6.76 by $0.47. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 14.65% and a net margin of 2.68%.The company had revenue of $111.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $109.84 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $7.20 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. UnitedHealth Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 18.250- EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 18.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The company 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. This represents a $8.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 9th. UnitedHealth Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 66.77%.

UnitedHealth Group Company Profile

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.

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