Janus Henderson Group PLC Raises Stock Holdings in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its stake in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH - Free Report) by 11.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 5,507,957 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock after purchasing an additional 549,658 shares during the period. UnitedHealth Group accounts for 1.4% of Janus Henderson Group PLC's portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest position. Janus Henderson Group PLC owned 0.60% of UnitedHealth Group worth $2,786,393,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of UNH. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted 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 valued at $10,068,869,000 after buying an additional 319,515 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors lifted its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 6.2% in the fourth 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. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter valued at $6,375,744,000. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake 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 valued at $4,807,527,000 after buying an additional 1,058,488 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in UnitedHealth Group by 10.7% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 8,923,770 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $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.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have commented on UNH. Argus downgraded shares of UnitedHealth Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $640.00 to $510.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Hsbc Global Res downgraded shares of UnitedHealth Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. HSBC reiterated a "hold" rating and issued a $490.00 target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, Erste Group Bank lowered UnitedHealth Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, UnitedHealth Group has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $596.86.

UnitedHealth Group Price Performance

UNH traded down $55.13 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $323.62. The company had a trading volume of 17,562,935 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,191,788. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a twelve month low of $322.60 and a twelve month high of $630.73. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $486.06 and its 200-day simple moving average is $520.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.83. The company has a market capitalization of $293.57 billion, a PE ratio of 20.88, a P/E/G ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.56.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly 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). The company had revenue of $109.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $111.56 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 3.60% and a return on equity of 26.69%. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $6.91 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th were given a dividend of $2.10 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. This represents a $8.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.60%. UnitedHealth Group's payout ratio is presently 35.18%.

UnitedHealth Group 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.