UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) Holdings Raised by Meeder Advisory Services Inc.

Meeder Advisory Services Inc. raised its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 4.1% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 17,092 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after buying an additional 668 shares during the period. Meeder Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $8,646,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. M&T Bank Corp raised its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 13.4% during the 3rd quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 220,590 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $128,975,000 after purchasing an additional 26,074 shares during the period. Sugarloaf Wealth Management LLC raised its position in UnitedHealth Group by 17.6% during the fourth quarter. Sugarloaf Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,957 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $4,025,000 after buying an additional 1,193 shares during the period. Parsifal Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in UnitedHealth Group during the 3rd quarter worth about $21,165,000. Signal Advisors Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 13.0% in the 4th quarter. Signal Advisors Wealth LLC now owns 9,115 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $4,611,000 after purchasing an additional 1,051 shares during the period. Finally, Waycross Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Waycross Partners LLC now owns 27,794 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $14,060,000 after purchasing an additional 658 shares during the period. 87.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of UNH stock opened at $522.97 on Wednesday. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 12 month low of $436.38 and a 12 month high of $630.73. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $509.06 and a 200-day moving average of $542.96. The firm has a market cap of $478.37 billion, a PE ratio of 33.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74.

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

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th were given a $2.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. This represents a $8.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.61%. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 54.19%.

Insider Buying and Selling at UnitedHealth Group

In related news, Director Timothy Patrick Flynn acquired 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 17th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $511.57 per share, for a total transaction of $511,570.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 4,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,302,065. This trade represents a 28.57 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on UNH. Stephens increased their target price 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. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $694.00 to $660.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Piper Sandler reduced their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $605.00 to $600.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $700.00 price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, HSBC upgraded shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $595.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Twenty investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price 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.