Premier Fund Managers Ltd Increases Stock Position in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Key Points

• Premier Fund Managers Ltd increased its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 20.0% in the first quarter, owning 120,049 shares valued at approximately $61.9 million.
• UnitedHealth Group's recent quarterly dividend increased to $2.21 per share, up from $2.10, representing an annualized yield of 3.13%.
• Analysts have mixed ratings on UnitedHealth Group, with one sell rating, nine holds, and fifteen buy ratings, alongside an average price target of $392.29.

Premier Fund Managers Ltd grew its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH - Free Report) by 20.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 120,049 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock after buying an additional 20,049 shares during the quarter. UnitedHealth Group makes up 2.3% of Premier Fund Managers Ltd's portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest position. Premier Fund Managers Ltd's holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $61,898,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of UNH. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 56,142.1% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 8,295,153 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $4,344,586,000 after acquiring an additional 8,280,404 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 36.6% in the 4th 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 valued at $4,346,712,000 after acquiring an additional 2,301,010 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in 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. Capital International Investors raised its holdings in 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. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 10.7% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 8,923,770 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $4,514,178,000 after purchasing an additional 861,854 shares in the last quarter. 87.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on UNH. TD Cowen lowered shares of UnitedHealth Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $308.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Raymond James Financial lowered shares of UnitedHealth Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $405.00 to $418.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, June 20th. Argus cut shares of UnitedHealth Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $521.00 to $362.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $373.52.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Down 5.4%

UNH traded down $13.48 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $236.08. The company had a trading volume of 32,808,288 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,931,089. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 52 week low of $235.60 and a 52 week high of $630.73. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. The company has a market capitalization of $214.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.22, a PEG ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 0.45. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $298.02 and its 200 day moving average price is $418.35.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $4.08 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.45 by ($0.37). UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 5.04% and a return on equity of 23.32%. The company had revenue of $111.62 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $111.75 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $6.80 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 12.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate 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 given a $2.21 dividend. This represents a $8.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 16th. This is a positive change from UnitedHealth Group's previous quarterly dividend of $2.10. UnitedHealth Group's payout ratio is currently 37.02%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn purchased 1,533 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 14th. The shares were bought at an average price of $320.80 per share, with a total value of $491,786.40. Following the acquisition, the director owned 6,033 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,935,386.40. This trade represents a 34.07% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Kristen Gil purchased 3,700 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 15th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $271.17 per share, for a total transaction of $1,003,329.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 3,818 shares in the company, valued at $1,035,327.06. This represents a 3,135.59% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders purchased a total of 109,408 shares of company stock worth $31,607,768 in the last ninety days. 0.28% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.