UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) Price Target Raised to $462.00

Key Points

• Leerink Partners raised UnitedHealth Group’s price target from $400 to $462 and kept an outperform rating, implying about 13% upside from the prior close.
• Other analysts remain generally bullish: recent target increases and upgrades from firms like Argus, TD Cowen, Sanford C. Bernstein, and Barclays leave the stock with an overall Moderate Buy consensus and an average target of $409.75.
• UnitedHealth recently beat earnings expectations, reporting $7.23 EPS on $111.65 billion in revenue, while the stock traded around $408.07 with institutional investors owning 87.86% of shares.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH - Get Free Report) had its price target upped by equities research analysts at Leerink Partners from $400.00 to $462.00 in a report issued on Wednesday, Marketbeat reports. The firm presently has an "outperform" rating on the healthcare conglomerate's stock. Leerink Partners' price target suggests a potential upside of 13.22% from the stock's previous close.

Other equities research analysts have also issued reports about the company. Argus upgraded UnitedHealth Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $400.00 price target for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. TD Cowen upped their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $311.00 to $337.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $444.00 to $492.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. HSBC raised UnitedHealth Group from a "reduce" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $300.00 target price for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $373.00 to $429.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have given a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $409.75.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

UnitedHealth Group stock opened at $408.07 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $370.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.82, a PEG ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.64. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $367.57 and a 200 day moving average price of $328.06. UnitedHealth Group has a 52 week low of $234.60 and a 52 week high of $415.98. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.23 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.76 by $0.47. The firm had revenue of $111.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $109.84 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 14.65% and a net margin of 2.68%.The business's quarterly revenue was up 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $7.20 earnings per share. UnitedHealth Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 18.250- EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that UnitedHealth Group will post 18.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Patrick Hugh Conway sold 800 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $355.00, for a total value of $284,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 17,805 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,320,775. This trade represents a 4.30% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.28% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of UnitedHealth Group

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter valued at $4,376,167,000. Capital Research Global Investors increased its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 126.9% during the 3rd quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 13,042,049 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $4,503,419,000 after purchasing an additional 7,293,009 shares during the period. Capital World Investors increased its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 18.8% during the 3rd quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 21,766,922 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $7,516,107,000 after purchasing an additional 3,439,182 shares during the period. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 141.9% during the 4th quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,109,029 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock valued at $1,356,432,000 after purchasing an additional 2,410,128 shares during the period. Finally, Cardano Risk Management B.V. grew its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 864.4% in the 4th quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. now owns 2,523,700 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $833,099,000 after acquiring an additional 2,262,006 shares during the last quarter. 87.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About UnitedHealth Group

UnitedHealth Group Inc is a diversified health care company headquartered in Minnetonka, Minnesota, that operates two primary business platforms: UnitedHealthcare and Optum. Founded in 1977, the company provides a broad range of health benefits and health care services to individuals, employers, governmental entities and other organizations. Its operations span commercial employer-sponsored plans, individual and Medicare and Medicaid programs, and services for customers and health systems in the United States and selected international markets.

UnitedHealthcare is the company's benefits business, administering health plans and networks, managing provider relationships, and offering coverage products for employers, individuals, and government-sponsored programs.

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