UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) Stock Position Raised by Palisade Asset Management LLC

Palisade Asset Management LLC grew its stake in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH - Free Report) by 2.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 68,541 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock after buying an additional 1,856 shares during the quarter. UnitedHealth Group accounts for about 3.7% of Palisade Asset Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest holding. Palisade Asset Management LLC's holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $35,898,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. lifted its position in UnitedHealth Group by 6.7% during the 1st quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 516,970 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $270,763,000 after buying an additional 32,612 shares in the last quarter. Foundation Wealth Management LLC PA raised its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 6.9% during the 1st quarter. Foundation Wealth Management LLC PA now owns 1,765 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $925,000 after purchasing an additional 114 shares in the last quarter. Walkner Condon Financial Advisors LLC increased its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 4.2% during the first quarter. Walkner Condon Financial Advisors LLC now owns 890 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $466,000 after buying an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Palumbo Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 28.8% in the first quarter. Palumbo Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,089 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $3,713,000 after acquiring an additional 1,584 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pursue Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the 1st quarter worth about $270,000. 87.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Patrick Hugh Conway sold 589 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $305.00, for a total value of $179,645.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 10,398 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,171,390. This trade represents a 5.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn purchased 1,533 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 14th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $320.80 per share, with a total value of $491,786.40. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 6,033 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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 have bought 109,408 shares of company stock valued at $31,607,768 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.28% of the company's stock.

UnitedHealth Group Trading Up 1.6%

NYSE UNH traded up $4.91 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $305.59. 8,710,041 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,371,930. The firm has a market cap of $277.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.80, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.45. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $353.44 and a 200 day simple moving average of $460.22. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 1-year low of $248.88 and a 1-year high of $630.73.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.29 by ($0.09). UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.29% and a net margin of 5.39%. The company had revenue of $109.58 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $111.56 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $6.91 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 24th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be issued a dividend of $2.21 per share. This represents a $8.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.89%. This is a positive change from UnitedHealth Group's previous quarterly dividend of $2.10. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. UnitedHealth Group's dividend payout ratio is 37.02%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on UNH shares. TD Securities restated a "hold" rating and issued a $308.00 price objective (down previously from $520.00) on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Mizuho dropped their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $515.00 to $350.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $552.00 to $353.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, June 3rd. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $563.00 to $374.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Raymond James Financial cut shares of UnitedHealth Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $427.09.

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.