Gradient Investments LLC Raises Position in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Gradient Investments LLC raised its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH - Free Report) by 10.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 92,695 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock after purchasing an additional 8,417 shares during the period. UnitedHealth Group accounts for about 1.1% of Gradient Investments LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest holding. Gradient Investments LLC's holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $45,856,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 83,860,515 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $44,150,045,000 after acquiring an additional 250,291 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 25,220,234 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $12,715,790,000 after buying an additional 527,526 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 15,122,203 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $7,961,369,000 after buying an additional 324,733 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors grew its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 4.8% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 11,860,985 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $6,244,158,000 after acquiring an additional 542,424 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $5,802,231,000. Institutional investors own 87.86% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently issued reports on UNH. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $591.00 price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Oppenheimer restated an "outperform" rating and set a $610.00 price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Wednesday, January 17th. TD Cowen cut their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $607.00 to $546.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $545.00 to $562.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 19th. Finally, HSBC upgraded shares of UnitedHealth Group from a "reduce" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $460.00 target price for the company in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, UnitedHealth Group currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $570.05.

Insider Buying and Selling at UnitedHealth Group

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. In other UnitedHealth Group news, 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 transaction of $451,127.82. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 32,289 shares of the company's stock, valued at $16,977,233.31. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,236 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $483.48, for a total value of $597,581.28. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 9,364 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,527,306.72. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.35% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE UNH traded down $0.52 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $492.45. The stock had a trading volume of 2,487,811 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,130,659. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.85. The company has a 50 day moving average of $482.32 and a two-hundred day moving average of $512.76. The firm has a market cap of $453.09 billion, a PE ratio of 30.10, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.55. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a twelve month low of $436.38 and a twelve month high of $554.70.

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

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Monday, March 11th were issued a dividend of $1.88 per share. This represents a $7.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.53%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 8th. UnitedHealth Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 45.97%.

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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