UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) Shares Sold by Cullen Frost Bankers Inc.

Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. lowered its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH - Free Report) by 3.2% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 104,031 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock after selling 3,423 shares during the quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc.'s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $54,486,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Hurley Capital LLC purchased a new position in UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. IAG Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the 1st quarter worth $42,000. Finally, Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda purchased a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter worth $41,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.86% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn purchased 1,533 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 14th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $320.80 per share, for a total transaction of $491,786.40. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 6,033 shares in the company, valued at $1,935,386.40. This represents a 34.07% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Patrick Hugh Conway sold 589 shares of the firm'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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 10,398 shares in the company, valued at $3,171,390. This represents a 5.36% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders bought 109,408 shares of company stock valued at $31,607,768 in the last three months. 0.28% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

Shares of UNH stock traded down $5.04 on Friday, hitting $283.03. The company's stock had a trading volume of 6,185,764 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,767,247. The company has a market capitalization of $256.74 billion, a PE ratio of 11.87, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $248.88 and a fifty-two week high of $630.73. The stock's 50 day moving average is $306.43 and its 200-day moving average is $434.93.

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). The company had revenue of $109.58 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $111.56 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 5.39% and a return on equity of 26.29%. During the same period last year, the firm posted $6.91 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 24th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th were given a dividend of $2.21 per share. 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 3.12%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 16th. UnitedHealth Group's payout ratio is 37.02%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have weighed in on UNH shares. Raymond James Financial downgraded UnitedHealth Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Erste Group Bank downgraded UnitedHealth Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. UBS Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Thursday. TD Cowen lowered UnitedHealth Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $308.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Monday, May 19th. Finally, HSBC reissued a "reduce" rating and issued a $270.00 target price (down previously from $490.00) on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, UnitedHealth Group currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $394.43.

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.