UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) Shares Sold by Flputnam Investment Management Co.

Flputnam Investment Management Co. trimmed its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 3.2% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 68,603 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after selling 2,262 shares during the period. Flputnam Investment Management Co.’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $34,704,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. AlphaMark Advisors LLC acquired a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in UnitedHealth Group in the third quarter worth about $37,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the 3rd quarter valued at about $57,000. DecisionPoint Financial LLC lifted its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 155.0% in the 4th quarter. DecisionPoint Financial LLC now owns 102 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $52,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares during the period. Finally, FPC Investment Advisory Inc. increased its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 863.6% during the fourth quarter. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 106 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $58,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.86% of the company’s stock.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Up 1.4 %

UnitedHealth Group stock opened at $474.95 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $516.59 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $557.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.83. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a twelve month low of $436.38 and a twelve month high of $630.73. The firm has a market cap of $437.09 billion, a PE ratio of 30.64, a P/E/G ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.61.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.74 by $0.07. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.69% and a net margin of 3.60%. The firm had revenue of $100.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $101.60 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $5.83 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a dividend of $2.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $8.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.77%. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 54.19%.

Insider Activity at UnitedHealth Group

In related news, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn bought 1,000 shares of UnitedHealth Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 17th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $511.57 per share, for a total transaction of $511,570.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 4,500 shares in the company, valued at $2,302,065. This trade represents a 28.57 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.33% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on UNH shares. Oppenheimer increased their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $610.00 to $640.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Stephens boosted their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $605.00 to $675.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Barclays cut their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $655.00 to $642.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, UnitedHealth Group has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $629.32.

UnitedHealth Group 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.