UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) Stock Price Expected to Rise, JPMorgan Chase & Co. Analyst Says

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH - Get Free Report) had its price target lifted by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $405.00 to $418.00 in a report released on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an "overweight" rating on the healthcare conglomerate's stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s price objective indicates a potential upside of 36.20% from the company's current price.

Other equities analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Wolfe Research dropped their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $501.00 to $390.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. Robert W. Baird downgraded UnitedHealth Group from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $312.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, June 11th. Raymond James Financial downgraded UnitedHealth Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced 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. Finally, KeyCorp reduced their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $450.00 to $400.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, June 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $427.09.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Down 0.6%

Shares of UNH opened at $306.90 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. UnitedHealth Group has a 52-week low of $248.88 and a 52-week high of $630.73. The company has a market cap of $278.40 billion, a PE ratio of 12.85, a P/E/G ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 0.44. The business has a fifty day moving average of $365.09 and a 200 day moving average of $465.88.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly 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). The business had revenue of $109.58 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $111.56 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.29% and a net margin of 5.39%. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $6.91 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that UnitedHealth Group will post 29.54 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Stephen J. Hemsley purchased 86,700 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 16th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $288.57 per share, with a total value of $25,019,019.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 679,493 shares of the company's stock, valued at $196,081,295.01. The trade was a 14.63% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Patrick Hugh Conway sold 589 shares of the business'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 owns 10,398 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,171,390. This represents a 5.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders bought 109,408 shares of company stock valued at $31,607,768 over the last quarter. 0.28% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

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

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