Royal Bank of Canada Cuts UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) Price Target to $525.00

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH - Free Report) had its price target reduced by Royal Bank of Canada from $655.00 to $525.00 in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. Royal Bank of Canada currently has an outperform rating on the healthcare conglomerate's stock.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on the stock. Argus downgraded shares of UnitedHealth Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Raymond James reaffirmed a "strong-buy" rating and set a $540.00 target price (down previously from $635.00) on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $664.00 to $563.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Oppenheimer decreased their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $640.00 to $600.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Hsbc Global Res lowered shares of UnitedHealth Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have assigned a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $603.05.

UnitedHealth Group Price Performance

UnitedHealth Group stock traded down $6.05 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $418.20. 9,255,934 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,482,211. UnitedHealth Group has a 12-month low of $412.02 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 stock has a 50 day moving average of $503.28 and a two-hundred day moving average of $534.62. The company has a market cap of $380.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.98, a PEG ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.61.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 17th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $7.29 by ($0.09). UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 3.60% and a return on equity of 26.69%. The business had revenue of $109.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $111.56 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $6.91 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that UnitedHealth Group will post 29.54 earnings per share for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed 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. This represents a $8.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. UnitedHealth Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 35.18%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the fourth quarter worth approximately $6,375,744,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 56,142.1% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 8,295,153 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $4,344,586,000 after buying an additional 8,280,404 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the fourth quarter worth about $1,914,740,000. Amundi lifted its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 97.2% in the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 6,069,100 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $3,183,132,000 after purchasing an additional 2,991,470 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 36.6% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 8,592,718 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $4,346,712,000 after purchasing an additional 2,301,010 shares in the last quarter. 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.