New Age Alpha Advisors LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Key Points

• New Age Alpha Advisors LLC reduced its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 6.3%, now holding 29,109 shares valued at approximately $15.25 million.
• UnitedHealth recently reported earnings of $4.08 per share, missing estimates, with revenues reaching $111.62 billion for the quarter.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend from $2.10 to $2.21 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend yield of 3.7%.

New Age Alpha Advisors LLC reduced its holdings in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH - Free Report) by 6.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 29,109 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock after selling 1,964 shares during the period. UnitedHealth Group accounts for about 0.7% of New Age Alpha Advisors LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 13th largest holding. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC's holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $15,246,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 56,142.1% during 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 purchasing an additional 8,280,404 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 36.6% during the 4th 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 worth $4,346,712,000 after buying an additional 2,301,010 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp increased its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 12.5% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 9,503,671 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $4,807,527,000 after purchasing an additional 1,058,488 shares during the period. Capital International Investors increased its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 6.2% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 15,616,007 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $7,899,905,000 after buying an additional 906,365 shares during the period. Finally, Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $367,521,000. 87.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

UnitedHealth Group Price Performance

Shares of UNH traded up $5.03 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $249.70. 7,390,861 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 12,084,746. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $292.78 and its 200-day simple moving average is $408.71. The stock has a market cap of $226.51 billion, a PE ratio of 10.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.43. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 12 month low of $234.60 and a 12 month high of $630.73.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $4.08 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $4.45 by ($0.37). The firm had revenue of $111.62 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $111.75 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 5.04% and a return on equity of 23.32%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 12.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $6.80 EPS. Equities analysts expect that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.54 EPS for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 24th. Investors of record on Monday, June 16th were paid a $2.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 16th. This is a boost from UnitedHealth Group's previous quarterly dividend of $2.10. This represents a $8.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.5%. UnitedHealth Group's payout ratio is 38.30%.

Insider Activity at UnitedHealth Group

In other UnitedHealth Group news, CFO John F. Rex purchased 17,175 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 16th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $291.12 per share, for a total transaction of $4,999,986.00. Following the purchase, the chief financial officer directly owned 203,796 shares in the company, valued at $59,329,091.52. The trade was a 9.20% increase 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, CEO Stephen J. Hemsley purchased 86,700 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 16th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $288.57 per share, for a total transaction of $25,019,019.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 679,493 shares in the company, valued at approximately $196,081,295.01. This represents a 14.63% 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 worth $31,607,768 over the last 90 days. 0.28% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

UNH has been the topic of several analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $355.00 to $286.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Hsbc Global Res cut UnitedHealth Group from a "hold" rating to a "moderate sell" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $418.00 to $310.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Wolfe Research decreased their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $501.00 to $390.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reissued an "underperform" rating and set a $198.00 price objective (down previously from $312.00) on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, UnitedHealth Group presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $366.52.

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.