Triglav Investments D.O.O. Boosts Position in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated $UNH

Key Points

• Triglav Investments D.O.O. boosted its UnitedHealth Group stake by 86% in the fourth quarter, ending with 33,399 shares worth about $11.0 million.
• Several analysts turned more upbeat on UNH, with recent price target increases from firms including Bernstein, UBS, Morgan Stanley, Wells Fargo and Truist; the consensus rating remains Moderate Buy with an average target of about $397.63.
• The stock is being shaped by both positive and negative headlines: UnitedHealthcare plans to cut prior authorization for many pediatric services, but Berkshire Hathaway fully exited its position and Massachusetts filed a lawsuit alleging Medicaid fraud at a UnitedHealth unit.

Triglav Investments D.O.O. raised its holdings in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH - Free Report) by 86.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 33,399 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock after purchasing an additional 15,443 shares during the period. Triglav Investments D.O.O.'s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $11,026,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in UNH. Capital Research Global Investors raised its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 126.9% in the 3rd quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 13,042,049 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $4,503,419,000 after purchasing an additional 7,293,009 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors raised its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 18.8% in the 3rd quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 21,766,922 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $7,516,107,000 after purchasing an additional 3,439,182 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors raised its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 11.1% in the 3rd quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 17,499,949 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $6,042,710,000 after purchasing an additional 1,747,337 shares in the last quarter. Lone Pine Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $528,273,000. Finally, Bessemer Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 152.3% in the 3rd quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,823,871 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $629,783,000 after acquiring an additional 1,100,850 shares during the last quarter. 87.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key UnitedHealth Group News

Here are the key news stories impacting UnitedHealth Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: UnitedHealthcare said it will eliminate prior authorization requirements for nearly two-thirds of pediatric services by year-end. That could reduce administrative friction, improve patient/provider relations, and support customer satisfaction. Reuters article
• Positive Sentiment: Bernstein raised its price target on UNH to $492 from $444 and kept an Outperform rating, citing an EPS recovery outlook. Higher price targets from analysts can help reinforce investor confidence. Yahoo Finance article
• Neutral Sentiment: Berkshire Hathaway fully exited its UNH stake, which is drawing attention to valuation and regulatory risks. While not necessarily a fundamental change, the sale may weigh on sentiment around the stock. Yahoo Finance article
• Negative Sentiment: Massachusetts filed a lawsuit against a UnitedHealth insurance unit, alleging more than $100 million in Medicaid fraud tied to inflated illness severity claims. The lawsuit adds legal and reputational risk for UNH. Investing.com article

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

UNH has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $375.00 to $395.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $444.00 to $492.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday. UBS Group increased their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $410.00 to $460.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $370.00 to $397.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Truist Financial reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $395.00 price target (up from $370.00) on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have issued a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $397.63.

UnitedHealth Group Trading Down 0.7%

Shares of UnitedHealth Group stock opened at $379.70 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The firm has a market cap of $344.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.64. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $336.85 and a 200-day simple moving average of $321.55. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $234.60 and a fifty-two week high of $404.15.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 21st. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.76 by $0.47. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 14.65% and a net margin of 2.68%.The business had revenue of $111.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $109.84 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $7.20 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. UnitedHealth Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 18.250- EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 18.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at UnitedHealth Group

In other news, CEO Patrick Hugh Conway sold 800 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $355.00, for a total transaction of $284,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 17,805 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,320,775. This represents a 4.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.28% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About UnitedHealth Group

UnitedHealth Group Inc is a diversified health care company headquartered in Minnetonka, Minnesota, that operates two primary business platforms: UnitedHealthcare and Optum. Founded in 1977, the company provides a broad range of health benefits and health care services to individuals, employers, governmental entities and other organizations. Its operations span commercial employer-sponsored plans, individual and Medicare and Medicaid programs, and services for customers and health systems in the United States and selected international markets.

UnitedHealthcare is the company's benefits business, administering health plans and networks, managing provider relationships, and offering coverage products for employers, individuals, and government-sponsored programs.

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