Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky Sells 25,020 Shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky decreased its position in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH - Free Report) by 12.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 169,862 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock after selling 25,020 shares during the period. UnitedHealth Group accounts for approximately 0.8% of Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky's investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest position. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky's holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $88,965,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in UNH. Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Hurley Capital LLC acquired a new position in UnitedHealth Group in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd acquired a new position in UnitedHealth Group in the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. IAG Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the first quarter valued at about $42,000. Finally, Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda purchased a new stake in UnitedHealth Group during the fourth quarter worth about $41,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.86% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at UnitedHealth Group

In related news, CEO Patrick Hugh Conway sold 589 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $305.00, for a total transaction of $179,645.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 10,398 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,171,390. This represents a 5.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Stephen J. Hemsley acquired 86,700 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 16th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $288.57 per share, for a total transaction of $25,019,019.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 679,493 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $196,081,295.01. This trade represents a 14.63% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have purchased 109,408 shares of company stock valued at $31,607,768. Corporate insiders own 0.28% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

UNH has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped 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. Bank of America downgraded shares of UnitedHealth Group from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $560.00 to $350.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. HSBC restated a "reduce" rating and issued a $270.00 price target (down from $490.00) on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Barclays reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. Finally, KeyCorp lowered their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $450.00 to $400.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, June 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $394.43.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

UNH traded up $2.92 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $288.05. The stock had a trading volume of 6,136,377 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,870,490. The firm has a market cap of $261.30 billion, a PE ratio of 12.05, a P/E/G ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.45. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 12 month low of $248.88 and a 12 month high of $630.73. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $304.47 and a 200-day simple moving average of $432.39.

UnitedHealth Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 24th. Investors of record on Monday, June 16th were paid a dividend of $2.21 per share. This represents a $8.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.07%. This is an increase from UnitedHealth Group's previous quarterly dividend of $2.10. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 16th. UnitedHealth Group's payout ratio is 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.