Nicolet Advisory Services LLC Sells 1,116 Shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Key Points

• Nicolet Advisory Services LLC has reduced its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 17.6%, now holding 5,234 shares valued at approximately $2.74 million.
• UnitedHealth Group's recent earnings showed an EPS of $4.08, falling short of analysts' expectations, while the company's revenue was up 12.9% year-over-year, totaling $111.62 billion.
• The company has increased its quarterly dividend to $2.21 per share, representing an annualized yield of 3.5%, up from the previous quarterly rate of $2.10.

Nicolet Advisory Services LLC cut its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH - Free Report) by 17.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 5,234 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock after selling 1,116 shares during the period. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC's holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $2,741,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 56,142.1% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 8,295,153 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $4,344,586,000 after acquiring an additional 8,280,404 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 36.6% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 8,592,718 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $4,346,712,000 after acquiring an additional 2,301,010 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 12.5% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 9,503,671 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $4,807,527,000 after acquiring an additional 1,058,488 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors increased its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 6.2% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 15,616,007 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $7,899,905,000 after acquiring an additional 906,365 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new stake in UnitedHealth Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $367,521,000. 87.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. Raymond James Financial lowered UnitedHealth Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Hsbc Global Res lowered UnitedHealth Group from a "hold" rating to a "moderate sell" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Barclays reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Thursday, July 17th. UBS Group reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered UnitedHealth Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, May 24th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, UnitedHealth Group currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $373.52.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Kristen Gil bought 3,700 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 15th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $271.17 per share, for a total transaction of $1,003,329.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 3,818 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,035,327.06. This represents a 3,135.59% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Stephen J. Hemsley bought 86,700 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 16th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $288.57 per share, for a total transaction of $25,019,019.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 679,493 shares in the company, valued at $196,081,295.01. The trade was a 14.63% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have bought 109,408 shares of company stock worth $31,607,768 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.28% of the company's stock.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:UNH traded down $12.16 during trading on Friday, reaching $237.40. 39,874,177 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 15,268,949. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 12 month low of $234.60 and a 12 month high of $630.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $215.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a 50 day moving average of $296.86 and a 200-day moving average of $416.24.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $4.08 earnings per share 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 return on equity of 23.32% and a net margin of 5.04%. The company's revenue was up 12.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $6.80 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.54 EPS for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 24th. Investors of record on Monday, June 16th were given a $2.21 dividend. This is a boost from UnitedHealth Group's previous quarterly dividend of $2.10. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 16th. This represents a $8.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.7%. UnitedHealth Group's payout ratio is currently 37.02%.

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.