UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) Shares Bought by Liberty One Investment Management LLC

Liberty One Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH - Free Report) by 580.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 56,155 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock after purchasing an additional 47,907 shares during the quarter. UnitedHealth Group makes up about 3.0% of Liberty One Investment Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 13th largest position. Liberty One Investment Management LLC's holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $29,411,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Citizens National Bank Trust Department raised its position in UnitedHealth Group by 1.0% in the 1st quarter. Citizens National Bank Trust Department now owns 17,886 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $9,368,000 after buying an additional 170 shares during the last quarter. Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH increased its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 0.3% in the first quarter. Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH now owns 530,103 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $277,641,000 after purchasing an additional 1,465 shares during the period. Sherbrooke Park Advisers LLC bought a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the fourth quarter worth $515,000. Full Sail Capital LLC lifted its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Full Sail Capital LLC now owns 1,612 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $815,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Soros Fund Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the fourth quarter worth $39,413,000. Institutional investors own 87.86% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on UNH shares. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $400.00 to $385.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, June 25th. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Friday, June 6th. Wolfe Research dropped their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $501.00 to $390.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. Oppenheimer lowered their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $600.00 to $400.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, TD Securities reissued a "hold" rating and set a $308.00 target price (down from $520.00) on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Monday, May 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $415.00.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

UNH traded down $5.62 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $302.08. The company had a trading volume of 12,778,535 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,629,597. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 1 year low of $248.88 and a 1 year high of $630.73. The business has a 50-day moving average of $320.63 and a two-hundred day moving average of $444.69. The company has a market cap of $274.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.65, a P/E/G ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 0.45.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.20 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $7.29 by ($0.09). The firm had revenue of $109.58 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $111.56 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 5.39% and a return on equity of 26.29%. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $6.91 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 issued a dividend of $2.21 per share. This is an increase from UnitedHealth Group's previous quarterly dividend of $2.10. This represents a $8.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.93%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 16th. UnitedHealth Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.02%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn purchased 1,533 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the director owned 6,033 shares in the company, valued at $1,935,386.40. The trade was a 34.07% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Stephen J. Hemsley acquired 86,700 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 679,493 shares in the company, valued at approximately $196,081,295.01. This trade represents a 14.63% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last three months, insiders bought 109,408 shares of company stock worth $31,607,768. Insiders own 0.28% of the company's stock.

About UnitedHealth Group

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.