UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) Shares Purchased by Strong Tower Advisory Services

Strong Tower Advisory Services boosted its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH - Free Report) by 11.1% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 21,186 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock after buying an additional 2,124 shares during the period. UnitedHealth Group accounts for approximately 2.7% of Strong Tower Advisory Services' portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest holding. Strong Tower Advisory Services' holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $11,116,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in UNH. Waycross Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Waycross Partners LLC now owns 27,794 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $14,060,000 after purchasing an additional 658 shares during the last quarter. Sherbrooke Park Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $515,000. Full Sail Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Full Sail Capital LLC now owns 1,612 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $815,000 after buying an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Soros Fund Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $39,413,000. Finally, Silvercrest Asset Management Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 47.8% in the fourth quarter. Silvercrest Asset Management Group LLC now owns 38,796 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $19,625,000 after buying an additional 12,550 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.86% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have commented on UNH. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $510.00 to $356.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Raymond James downgraded UnitedHealth Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. KeyCorp decreased their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $450.00 to $400.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. Bank of America cut UnitedHealth Group from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and cut their price target for the stock from $560.00 to $350.00 in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut 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. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $428.43.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Down 0.1%

NYSE UNH traded down $0.30 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $300.08. 4,697,841 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,902,745. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $418.00 and a 200-day simple moving average of $488.12. 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 $272.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.36, a P/E/G ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.56.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH - Get Free Report) last released its 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 26.69% and a net margin of 3.60%. The firm had revenue of $109.58 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $111.56 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $6.91 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.54 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director John H. Noseworthy purchased 300 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 14th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $312.16 per share, for a total transaction of $93,648.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 6,063 shares in the company, valued at $1,892,626.08. This trade represents a 5.21% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO John F. Rex bought 17,175 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 16th. The stock was bought at an average price of $291.12 per share, for a total transaction of $4,999,986.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief financial officer now directly owns 203,796 shares in the company, valued at approximately $59,329,091.52. The trade was a 9.20% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have purchased 109,408 shares of company stock valued at $31,607,768. Insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

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.