JPMorgan Chase & Co. Lowers UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) Price Target to $405.00

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH - Get Free Report) had its price objective reduced by equities research analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $525.00 to $405.00 in a note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an "overweight" rating on the healthcare conglomerate's stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s target price points to a potential upside of 31.34% from the stock's current price.

Several other equities analysts have also recently commented on the company. Raymond James cut UnitedHealth Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday. HSBC reissued a "hold" rating and set a $490.00 price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. KeyCorp reduced their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $575.00 to $450.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $510.00 to $356.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $655.00 to $525.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $517.81.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

Shares of UnitedHealth Group stock opened at $308.35 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $279.72 billion, a PE ratio of 19.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.56. UnitedHealth Group has a 12 month low of $282.97 and a 12 month high of $630.73. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $478.83 and a 200-day simple moving average of $517.83.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH - Get Free Report) last posted 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). 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 analysts' expectations of $111.56 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $6.91 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that UnitedHealth Group will post 29.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On UnitedHealth Group

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 6.6% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 90,729,585 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $47,519,620,000 after purchasing an additional 5,583,343 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 10.6% during the 1st quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 25,847,940 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $13,537,859,000 after acquiring an additional 2,486,839 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 1.6% during 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 period. Capital International Investors boosted its stake 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $6,375,744,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.86% 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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