Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA Lowers Stock Holdings in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA trimmed its holdings in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH - Free Report) by 5.3% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 52,452 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock after selling 2,944 shares during the quarter. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA's holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $25,766,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH lifted its position in UnitedHealth Group by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH now owns 530,103 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $277,641,000 after acquiring an additional 1,465 shares during the period. Bellecapital International Ltd. increased its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 2.3% in the 1st quarter. Bellecapital International Ltd. now owns 16,599 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $8,694,000 after purchasing an additional 372 shares in the last quarter. Allen Mooney & Barnes Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 6.7% during the 1st quarter. Allen Mooney & Barnes Investment Advisors LLC now owns 22,911 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $12,000,000 after buying an additional 1,445 shares in the last quarter. Spectrum Asset Management Inc. NB CA increased its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 12.2% during the 1st quarter. Spectrum Asset Management Inc. NB CA now owns 7,071 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $3,703,000 after buying an additional 767 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 1.5% during the 1st quarter. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. now owns 188,499 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $98,726,000 after purchasing an additional 2,822 shares during the last quarter. 87.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

UnitedHealth Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE UNH traded down $5.11 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $313.39. 11,370,931 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,175,411. The company has a market capitalization of $284.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. 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 $391.47 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $476.22.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.20 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.29 by ($0.09). UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.69% and a net margin of 3.60%. The firm had revenue of $109.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $111.56 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $6.91 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.54 EPS for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 24th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be issued a $2.21 dividend. This is an increase from UnitedHealth Group's previous quarterly dividend of $2.10. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 16th. This represents a $8.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.82%. UnitedHealth Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 37.02%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently commented on UNH. Robert W. Baird cut UnitedHealth Group from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $312.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Wednesday. Hsbc Global Res downgraded shares of UnitedHealth Group from a "hold" rating to a "moderate sell" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Mizuho reduced their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $515.00 to $350.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Wolfe Research dropped their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $501.00 to $390.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Finally, TD Securities reiterated a "hold" rating and issued a $308.00 price target (down previously from $520.00) on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Monday, May 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $426.52.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO John F. Rex purchased 17,175 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 16th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $291.12 per share, for a total transaction of $4,999,986.00. Following the acquisition, the chief financial officer now directly owns 203,796 shares of the company's stock, valued at $59,329,091.52. This represents a 9.20% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn acquired 1,533 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 14th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $320.80 per share, with a total value of $491,786.40. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 6,033 shares in the company, valued at $1,935,386.40. This trade represents a 34.07% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders purchased a total of 109,408 shares of company stock worth $31,607,768 over the last quarter. 0.28% of the stock is currently 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.