Sivia Capital Partners LLC Sells 157 Shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH)

Sivia Capital Partners LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 5.7% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 2,620 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after selling 157 shares during the quarter. UnitedHealth Group accounts for approximately 0.9% of Sivia Capital Partners LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest position. Sivia Capital Partners LLC’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $1,296,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Norges Bank bought a new stake in UnitedHealth Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $5,802,231,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its position in UnitedHealth Group by 53,573.1% in the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,352,490 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $1,238,515,000 after purchasing an additional 2,348,107 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 49.3% in the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 3,617,813 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $1,904,670,000 after purchasing an additional 1,195,352 shares during the period. California Public Employees Retirement System increased its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 35.9% during the fourth quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 3,090,986 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,627,311,000 after buying an additional 815,822 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado boosted its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 3,464.9% during the 4th quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado now owns 825,311 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $434,501,000 after acquiring an additional 802,160 shares during the last quarter. 87.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

UNH stock traded down $8.48 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $489.76. The stock had a trading volume of 1,072,208 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,267,989. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 52-week low of $436.38 and a 52-week high of $554.70. The stock has a market cap of $450.77 billion, a PE ratio of 30.01, a P/E/G ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 0.60. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $498.64 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $501.12.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.63 by $0.28. The firm had revenue of $99.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $99.23 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 4.05% and a return on equity of 26.50%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $6.26 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.55 EPS for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 25th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 17th were given a dividend of $2.10 per share. This is a positive change from UnitedHealth Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.88. This represents a $8.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.72%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 17th. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 51.34%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

UNH has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. TD Cowen cut their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $607.00 to $546.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. HSBC upgraded UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $580.00 price target for the company in a research note on Wednesday, June 5th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $591.00 target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Wednesday, June 12th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $534.00 to $560.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Finally, Erste Group Bank reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $579.74.

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.