Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. Raises Position in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH - Free Report) by 16.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 133,697 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock after purchasing an additional 19,193 shares during the quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd.'s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $67,504,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the fourth quarter worth $6,375,744,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position 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 buying an additional 8,280,404 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,914,740,000. Amundi raised its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 97.2% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 6,069,100 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $3,183,132,000 after purchasing an additional 2,991,470 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 36.6% in the fourth 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 purchasing an additional 2,301,010 shares during the last quarter. 87.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on UNH. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $563.00 to $374.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. UBS Group lowered their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $400.00 to $385.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Hsbc Global Res downgraded UnitedHealth Group from a "hold" rating to a "moderate sell" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Raymond James Financial lowered UnitedHealth Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $525.00 to $355.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 16th. 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $415.57.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Patrick Hugh Conway sold 589 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $305.00, for a total transaction of $179,645.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 10,398 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,171,390. This represents a 5.36% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Kristen Gil bought 3,700 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 15th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $271.17 per share, for a total transaction of $1,003,329.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,818 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,035,327.06. This trade represents a 3,135.59% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have purchased a total of 109,408 shares of company stock valued at $31,607,768 over the last ninety days. 0.28% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

UnitedHealth Group Trading Up 2.1%

Shares of UNH stock traded up $6.23 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $308.85. 13,584,804 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,465,895. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $336.21 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $454.51. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current 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. The company has a market cap of $280.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.44.

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

UnitedHealth Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 24th. Investors of record on Monday, June 16th were paid a $2.21 dividend. This is a positive change from UnitedHealth Group's previous quarterly dividend of $2.10. This represents a $8.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.86%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 16th. UnitedHealth Group's payout ratio is currently 37.02%.

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.