Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Boosts Stake in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH - Free Report) by 5.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 183,323 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock after acquiring an additional 9,359 shares during the quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.'s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $96,513,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Richelieu Gestion SA purchased a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Robbins Farley bought a new stake in UnitedHealth Group during the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. CGC Financial Services LLC raised its position in UnitedHealth Group by 1,000.0% during the 4th quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 55 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC raised its position in UnitedHealth Group by 340.0% during the 3rd quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 66 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Finally, LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA raised its position in UnitedHealth Group by 148.1% during the 4th quarter. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA now owns 67 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.86% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Erste Group Bank reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Wednesday, March 13th. Oppenheimer reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $610.00 price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Wednesday, January 17th. Bank of America reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $675.00 price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Thursday, March 7th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $600.00 to $525.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Finally, TD Cowen reduced their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $607.00 to $546.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $571.20.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

UnitedHealth Group stock traded up $10.10 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $478.99. 8,753,188 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,466,714. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.79. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $489.51 and its 200-day moving average price is $515.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $441.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.09, a P/E/G ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 0.54. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 1 year low of $436.38 and a 1 year high of $554.70.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.63 by $0.28. The business had revenue of $99.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $99.23 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.39% and a net margin of 6.02%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $6.26 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 11th were paid a $1.88 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 8th. This represents a $7.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.57%. UnitedHealth Group's payout ratio is 31.54%.

Insider Transactions at UnitedHealth Group

In other news, CAO Thomas E. Roos sold 858 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $525.79, for a total value of $451,127.82. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 32,289 shares in the company, valued at $16,977,233.31. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other UnitedHealth Group news, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,236 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 8th. The stock was 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 $4,527,306.72. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Thomas E. Roos sold 858 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $525.79, for a total value of $451,127.82. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 32,289 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,977,233.31. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.35% of the company's stock.

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.