MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH Increases Holdings in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH grew its position in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH - Free Report) by 20.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 132,926 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock after buying an additional 22,840 shares during the period. UnitedHealth Group accounts for approximately 2.0% of MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH's investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest position. MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH's holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $69,620,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 19,956,219 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $10,068,869,000 after purchasing an additional 319,515 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors raised its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 6.2% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 15,616,007 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $7,899,905,000 after acquiring an additional 906,365 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $6,375,744,000. Northern Trust Corp raised its position in UnitedHealth Group by 12.5% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 9,503,671 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $4,807,527,000 after purchasing an additional 1,058,488 shares during the period. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 10.7% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 8,923,770 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $4,514,178,000 after buying an additional 861,854 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.86% of the company's stock.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

Shares of UNH stock traded down $1.97 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $306.90. The stock had a trading volume of 11,091,068 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,282,020. The stock's 50 day moving average is $376.32 and its 200 day moving average is $469.08. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a twelve month low of $248.88 and a twelve month high of $630.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $278.40 billion, a PE ratio of 12.85, a PEG ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 0.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.85.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH - Get Free Report) last announced its 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 business had revenue of $109.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations 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, research analysts forecast that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 24th. Investors of record on Monday, June 16th will be issued a dividend of $2.21 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. This is an increase from UnitedHealth Group's previous quarterly dividend of $2.10. This represents a $8.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.88%. UnitedHealth Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 37.02%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other UnitedHealth Group news, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn purchased 1,533 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 14th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $320.80 per share, for a total transaction of $491,786.40. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 6,033 shares in the company, valued at $1,935,386.40. This represents a 34.07% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Stephen J. Hemsley bought 86,700 shares of UnitedHealth Group stock in a transaction on Friday, May 16th. The stock was acquired 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 now owns 679,493 shares of the company's stock, valued at $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 quarter, insiders bought 109,408 shares of company stock worth $31,607,768. 0.28% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $521.00 to $362.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Robert W. Baird downgraded shares of UnitedHealth Group from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $312.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, June 11th. Hsbc Global Res lowered UnitedHealth Group from a "hold" rating to a "moderate sell" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Wall Street Zen downgraded UnitedHealth Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, May 24th. Finally, Argus lowered shares of UnitedHealth Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, April 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $426.52.

UnitedHealth Group Company 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.