Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. Buys 119,434 Shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Key Points

• Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. significantly increased its holdings in UnitedHealth Group, purchasing 119,434 shares and raising its ownership by 994.7% to a total of 131,441 shares valued at approximately $68.84 million.
• The stock of UnitedHealth Group is currently down 4.9%, with a recent price of $237.40, after reporting earnings that missed analysts' expectations.
• UnitedHealth Group recently announced a quarterly dividend increase to $2.21 per share, representing an annualized dividend of $8.84 and a yield of 3.7%.

Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. increased its holdings in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH - Free Report) by 994.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 131,441 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock after purchasing an additional 119,434 shares during the period. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd.'s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $68,842,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in UNH. Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Hurley Capital LLC bought a new stake in UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Bayforest Capital Ltd grew its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 685.7% during the 1st quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 55 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd bought a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda purchased a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter worth $41,000. 87.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Down 4.9%

UnitedHealth Group stock opened at $237.40 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $215.36 billion, a PE ratio of 10.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $296.86 and a 200 day moving average price of $416.24. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $234.60 and a fifty-two week high of $630.73.

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

UnitedHealth Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 24th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th were given a dividend of $2.21 per share. This represents a $8.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.7%. This is a boost from UnitedHealth Group's previous quarterly dividend of $2.10. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 16th. UnitedHealth Group's payout ratio is 38.30%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently issued reports on UNH. Oppenheimer reduced their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $400.00 to $325.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Wolfe Research dropped their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $501.00 to $390.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $350.00 to $300.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Piper Sandler dropped their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $353.00 to $317.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Baird R W cut UnitedHealth Group from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Thursday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, UnitedHealth Group presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $373.52.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other UnitedHealth Group news, Director Kristen Gil acquired 3,700 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 15th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $271.17 per share, with a total value of $1,003,329.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 3,818 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,035,327.06. This trade represents a 3,135.59% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Stephen J. Hemsley bought 86,700 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 16th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $288.57 per share, with a total value of $25,019,019.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 679,493 shares of the company's stock, 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. Over the last ninety days, insiders acquired 109,408 shares of company stock worth $31,607,768. Corporate insiders own 0.28% 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.

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