Vulcan Value Partners LLC Purchases 40,097 Shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Key Points

• Vulcan Value Partners LLC increased its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 35.3% in the first quarter, holding a total of 153,586 shares valued at approximately $80.43 million.
• UnitedHealth Group's stock has a current market capitalization of $226.27 billion, with recent share prices dropping by 6.2% to around $249.43.
• The company recently increased its quarterly dividend to $2.21, resulting in an annualized dividend yield of 3.5% for shareholders.

Vulcan Value Partners LLC raised its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH - Free Report) by 35.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 153,586 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock after buying an additional 40,097 shares during the period. UnitedHealth Group comprises about 1.5% of Vulcan Value Partners LLC's holdings, making the stock its 21st largest holding. Vulcan Value Partners LLC's holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $80,432,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP raised its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 304.9% in the first quarter. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP now owns 5,993 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $3,139,000 after buying an additional 4,513 shares in the last quarter. Mengis Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in UnitedHealth Group in the first quarter valued at $205,000. Commerce Bank raised its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 3.2% in the first quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 124,317 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $65,111,000 after buying an additional 3,902 shares in the last quarter. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. raised its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 5.6% in the first quarter. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. now owns 622 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $326,000 after buying an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 109.7% during the first quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. now owns 15,119 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $7,919,000 after purchasing an additional 7,910 shares in the last quarter. 87.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

UNH has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Robert W. Baird reiterated an "underperform" rating and set a $198.00 target price (down previously from $312.00) on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Thursday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $521.00 to $362.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Argus lowered UnitedHealth Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, April 21st. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $351.00 to $306.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Baird R W cut UnitedHealth Group from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Thursday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, UnitedHealth Group currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $373.52.

Insider Buying and Selling at UnitedHealth Group

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

UnitedHealth Group Trading Down 4.9%

UnitedHealth Group stock traded down $12.16 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $237.40. The stock had a trading volume of 39,874,177 shares, compared to its average volume of 15,268,949. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $296.86 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $416.24. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a twelve month low of $234.60 and a twelve month high of $630.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The firm has a market cap of $215.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.29, a PEG ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 0.43.

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

UnitedHealth Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 24th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th were issued a dividend of $2.21 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 16th. This represents a $8.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.7%. This is an increase from UnitedHealth Group's previous quarterly dividend of $2.10. UnitedHealth Group's payout ratio is 37.02%.

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.