Waverton Investment Management Ltd Increases Position in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Waverton Investment Management Ltd boosted its holdings in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH - Free Report) by 9.4% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 480,418 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock after acquiring an additional 41,441 shares during the quarter. UnitedHealth Group comprises about 3.9% of Waverton Investment Management Ltd's investment portfolio, making the stock its 8th biggest holding. Waverton Investment Management Ltd owned 0.05% of UnitedHealth Group worth $251,602,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 19,956,219 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $10,068,869,000 after acquiring an additional 319,515 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors raised its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 6.2% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 15,616,007 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $7,899,905,000 after buying an additional 906,365 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the fourth quarter worth about $6,375,744,000. Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 12.5% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 9,503,671 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $4,807,527,000 after acquiring an additional 1,058,488 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 10.7% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 8,923,770 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $4,514,178,000 after purchasing an additional 861,854 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.86% of the company's stock.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

UNH opened at $302.43 on Friday. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 12-month low of $248.88 and a 12-month high of $630.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $274.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.44. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $339.15 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $456.28. 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 (NYSE:UNH - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.20 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $7.29 by ($0.09). The company had revenue of $109.58 billion during 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 company earned $6.91 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.54 earnings per share for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Increases Dividend

The company 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. This represents a $8.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.92%. This is a positive change from UnitedHealth Group's previous quarterly dividend of $2.10. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 16th. UnitedHealth Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 37.02%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Wall Street Zen lowered UnitedHealth Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 24th. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $400.00 to $385.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley dropped 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. Barclays reduced their price objective on UnitedHealth Group to $350.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, June 2nd. Finally, Truist Financial reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $360.00 price target (down from $580.00) on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Monday, May 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $415.57.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other UnitedHealth Group news, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn bought 1,533 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 14th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $320.80 per share, with a total value of $491,786.40. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 6,033 shares in the company, valued at $1,935,386.40. The trade was a 34.07% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director John H. Noseworthy acquired 300 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 14th. The stock was bought at an average price of $312.16 per share, for a total transaction of $93,648.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 6,063 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,892,626.08. This trade represents a 5.21% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have acquired 109,408 shares of company stock worth $31,607,768 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.28% 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.

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