UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) Stock Price Up 1.4%

UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH - Get Free Report)'s stock price shot up 1.4% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $525.50 and last traded at $524.99. 1,026,096 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 76% from the average session volume of 4,239,190 shares. The stock had previously closed at $517.55.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently issued reports on UNH. HSBC raised UnitedHealth Group from a "reduce" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $460.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $600.00 to $525.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 8th. TD Cowen dropped their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $607.00 to $546.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $545.00 to $562.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 19th. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $566.00 to $571.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, UnitedHealth Group has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $570.05.

UnitedHealth Group Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of $479.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 0.55. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $485.45 and a 200-day moving average price of $511.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.91 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $6.63 by $0.28. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 4.05% and a return on equity of 26.50%. The firm had revenue of $99.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $99.23 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $6.26 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 11th were paid a dividend of $1.88 per share. This represents a $7.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 8th. UnitedHealth Group's payout ratio is 45.97%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Thomas E. Roos sold 858 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $525.79, for a total transaction of $451,127.82. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 32,289 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $16,977,233.31. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other UnitedHealth Group news, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,236 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $483.48, for a total transaction of $597,581.28. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 9,364 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,527,306.72. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Thomas E. Roos sold 858 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $525.79, for a total transaction of $451,127.82. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 32,289 shares of the company's stock, valued at $16,977,233.31. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On UnitedHealth Group

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Enterprise Financial Services Corp grew its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Enterprise Financial Services Corp now owns 2,940 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $1,482,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares during the period. Stockman Wealth Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 10.9% in the third quarter. Stockman Wealth Management Inc. now owns 579 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $292,000 after buying an additional 57 shares during the period. Byrne Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 12.6% during the 3rd quarter. Byrne Asset Management LLC now owns 982 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $495,000 after acquiring an additional 110 shares during the period. Manhattan West Asset Management LLC raised its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 125.7% during the 3rd quarter. Manhattan West Asset Management LLC now owns 2,458 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $1,282,000 after acquiring an additional 1,369 shares during the period. Finally, Leeward Financial Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 10.4% in the third quarter. Leeward Financial Partners LLC now owns 6,115 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $3,083,000 after purchasing an additional 575 shares in the last quarter. 87.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.