UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) Shares Down 1.5% - Here's Why

UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH - Get Free Report) dropped 1.5% on Monday . The stock traded as low as $307.11 and last traded at $306.62. Approximately 4,508,558 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 37% from the average daily volume of 7,194,698 shares. The stock had previously closed at $311.32.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

UNH has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Wolfe Research cut their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $501.00 to $390.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. Hsbc Global Res downgraded shares of UnitedHealth Group from a "hold" rating to a "moderate sell" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $525.00 to $355.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 16th. Oppenheimer lowered their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $600.00 to $400.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Bank of America downgraded UnitedHealth Group from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $560.00 to $350.00 in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, UnitedHealth Group presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $426.52.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Down 1.3%

The company has a market capitalization of $278.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.79, a PEG ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.44. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $386.66 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $472.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.91.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results 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 company had revenue of $109.58 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $111.56 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $6.91 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 24th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be given a $2.21 dividend. This represents a $8.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.88%. This is a positive change from UnitedHealth Group's previous quarterly dividend of $2.10. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. UnitedHealth Group's dividend payout ratio is 37.02%.

Insider Buying and Selling at UnitedHealth Group

In related news, CEO Patrick Hugh Conway sold 589 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $305.00, for a total transaction of $179,645.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 10,398 shares in the company, valued at $3,171,390. This represents a 5.36% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CFO John F. Rex purchased 17,175 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 16th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $291.12 per share, for a total transaction of $4,999,986.00. Following the acquisition, the chief financial officer now directly owns 203,796 shares in the company, valued at approximately $59,329,091.52. This trade represents a 9.20% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders acquired 109,408 shares of company stock worth $31,607,768 over the last ninety days. 0.28% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On UnitedHealth Group

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. NewSquare Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Hurley Capital LLC bought a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Bayforest Capital Ltd boosted its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 685.7% during the 1st quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 55 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd bought a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.86% 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.

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