UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) Shares Sold by Pacer Advisors Inc.

Key Points

• Pacer Advisors Inc. decreased its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 35.8%, now owning 47,074 shares worth approximately $24.7 million after selling over 26,000 shares in the first quarter.
• Other institutional investors also adjusted their positions, with GAMMA Investing LLC significantly increasing its stake by 56,142.1% during the same period, acquiring over 8.2 million shares.
• UnitedHealth Group recently raised its quarterly dividend to $2.21 per share, reflecting a 3.15% yield, up from the previous $2.10 per share.

Pacer Advisors Inc. lowered its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH - Free Report) by 35.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 47,074 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock after selling 26,201 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc.'s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $24,655,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Financial Management Professionals Inc. lifted its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 0.8% during the 1st quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. now owns 2,224 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $1,165,000 after purchasing an additional 17 shares during the period. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates increased its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 28.6% in the 1st quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 90 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Kolinsky Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Kolinsky Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,135 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $1,080,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. Retirement Planning Group LLC grew its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 5.1% during the first quarter. Retirement Planning Group LLC now owns 430 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $225,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Net Worth Advisory Group grew its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 0.6% during the first quarter. Net Worth Advisory Group now owns 3,642 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $1,907,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.86% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Mizuho cut their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $515.00 to $350.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 16th. UBS Group restated a "buy" rating on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Piper Sandler decreased their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $552.00 to $353.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, June 3rd. Bank of America lowered shares of UnitedHealth Group from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $560.00 to $350.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res lowered shares of UnitedHealth Group from a "hold" rating to a "moderate sell" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, UnitedHealth Group currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $392.29.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Patrick Hugh Conway sold 589 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $305.00, for a total transaction of $179,645.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 10,398 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,171,390. This trade represents a 5.36% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn bought 1,533 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 14th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $320.80 per share, with a total value of $491,786.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 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 disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have bought a total of 109,408 shares of company stock worth $31,607,768 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.28% of the company's stock.

UnitedHealth Group Trading Down 5.2%

Shares of NYSE:UNH traded down $14.57 on Tuesday, hitting $267.55. 24,386,567 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 11,472,069. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $242.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 0.45. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $300.91 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $422.56. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 12 month low of $248.88 and a 12 month high of $630.73.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $4.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.16 by ($1.08). UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 5.39% and a return on equity of 26.29%. UnitedHealth Group's quarterly revenue was up 12.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $6.80 EPS. Analysts anticipate that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.54 EPS for the current fiscal 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 is a positive change from UnitedHealth Group's previous quarterly dividend of $2.10. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 16th. This represents a $8.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.30%. UnitedHealth Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.02%.

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.