Stock Traders Purchase Large Volume of UnitedHealth Group Call Options (NYSE:UNH)

UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH - Get Free Report) saw some unusual options trading on Tuesday. Stock traders acquired 234,071 call options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 40% compared to the typical daily volume of 166,830 call options.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Up 4.4%

NYSE UNH traded up $13.86 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $325.83. The company's stock had a trading volume of 17,631,859 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,468,624. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $331.91 and its 200 day simple moving average is $451.20. UnitedHealth Group has a twelve month low of $248.88 and a twelve month high of $630.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $295.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.64, a PEG ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 0.45.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.20 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 previous year, the firm earned $6.91 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that UnitedHealth Group will post 29.54 earnings per share for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 24th. Investors of record on Monday, June 16th were issued a dividend of $2.21 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 16th. This represents a $8.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.71%. This is an increase from UnitedHealth Group's previous quarterly dividend of $2.10. UnitedHealth Group's dividend payout ratio is 37.02%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $525.00 to $355.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 16th. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Friday, June 6th. Raymond James Financial lowered shares of UnitedHealth Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Baird R W downgraded shares of UnitedHealth Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 11th. Finally, KeyCorp cut their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $450.00 to $400.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report 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 stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $415.57.

Insider Activity at UnitedHealth Group

In other news, CEO Stephen J. Hemsley purchased 86,700 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 16th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $288.57 per share, with a total value of $25,019,019.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer owned 679,493 shares of the company's stock, valued at $196,081,295.01. This trade represents a 14.63% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Kristen Gil acquired 3,700 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 15th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $271.17 per share, with a total value of $1,003,329.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 3,818 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,035,327.06. This trade represents a 3,135.59% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have acquired a total of 109,408 shares of company stock worth $31,607,768 over the last 90 days. 0.28% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On UnitedHealth Group

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. NewSquare Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Hurley Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Bayforest Capital Ltd increased its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 685.7% during the first quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 55 shares of the healthcare conglomerate's stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new position in UnitedHealth Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. 87.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.