Penobscot Investment Management Company Inc. Lowers Stake in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Penobscot Investment Management Company Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH - Free Report) by 4.9% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 27,103 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock after selling 1,409 shares during the period. UnitedHealth Group makes up about 1.3% of Penobscot Investment Management Company Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest holding. Penobscot Investment Management Company Inc.'s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $14,195,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings 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 valued at $10,068,869,000 after purchasing an additional 319,515 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors lifted its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 6.2% during 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 purchasing an additional 906,365 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter valued at $6,375,744,000. Northern Trust Corp increased its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 12.5% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 9,503,671 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $4,807,527,000 after acquiring an additional 1,058,488 shares during the period. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 10.7% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 8,923,770 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $4,514,178,000 after acquiring an additional 861,854 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.86% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn bought 1,533 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 14th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $320.80 per share, for a total transaction of $491,786.40. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 6,033 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,935,386.40. This trade represents a 34.07% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director John H. Noseworthy purchased 300 shares of UnitedHealth Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 14th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $312.16 per share, with a total value of $93,648.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 6,063 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,892,626.08. The trade was a 5.21% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have acquired 109,408 shares of company stock valued at $31,607,768 in the last ninety days. 0.28% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

UNH has been the topic of several research reports. Hsbc Global Res downgraded UnitedHealth Group from a "hold" rating to a "moderate sell" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $405.00 to $418.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, June 20th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $563.00 to $374.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Friday, June 6th. Finally, TD Cowen downgraded UnitedHealth Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $308.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Monday, May 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $415.57.

UnitedHealth Group Trading Down 1.1%

UNH stock opened at $302.19 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $274.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.65, a PEG ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 0.44. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 52-week low of $248.88 and a 52-week high of $630.73. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $342.22 and its 200-day simple moving average is $458.07. 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 (NYSE:UNH - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.20 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $7.29 by ($0.09). UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.29% and a net margin of 5.39%. The business had revenue of $109.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $111.56 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $6.91 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast 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. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 16th were paid a $2.21 dividend. This represents a $8.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.93%. This is a positive change from UnitedHealth Group's previous quarterly dividend of $2.10. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 16th. UnitedHealth Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.02%.

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding UNH? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.