FY2024 EPS Estimates for UnitedHealth Group Incorporated Increased by Zacks Research (NYSE:UNH)

UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) – Stock analysts at Zacks Research boosted their FY2024 earnings estimates for UnitedHealth Group in a research report issued on Tuesday, July 30th. Zacks Research analyst D. Chatterjee now forecasts that the healthcare conglomerate will post earnings of $27.62 per share for the year, up from their prior forecast of $27.50. The consensus estimate for UnitedHealth Group’s current full-year earnings is $27.69 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for UnitedHealth Group’s Q2 2025 earnings at $7.38 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $31.21 EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at $8.23 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $8.60 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $35.27 EPS.

Several other brokerages have also recently commented on UNH. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $560.00 to $604.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $595.00 to $615.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Argus raised their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $570.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $555.00 to $615.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $566.00 to $571.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $614.17.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

UNH opened at $589.83 on Friday. UnitedHealth Group has a 1-year low of $436.38 and a 1-year high of $591.54. The company has a market capitalization of $542.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.59. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $514.72 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $503.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.85.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.66 by $0.14. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 3.66% and a return on equity of 26.55%. The company had revenue of $98.86 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $98.73 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $6.14 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year.

UnitedHealth Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 25th. Investors of record on Monday, June 17th were paid a $2.10 dividend. This represents a $8.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 17th. This is a boost from UnitedHealth Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.88. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.34%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other UnitedHealth Group news, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $579.03, for a total value of $868,545.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 7,785 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,507,748.55. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $579.03, for a total transaction of $868,545.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 7,785 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,507,748.55. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CAO Thomas E. Roos sold 2,851 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $569.88, for a total value of $1,624,727.88. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 29,501 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,812,029.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On UnitedHealth Group

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Norges Bank bought a new stake in UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter worth about $5,802,231,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 53,573.1% during the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,352,490 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $1,238,515,000 after buying an additional 2,348,107 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB acquired a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the first quarter valued at $1,117,462,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 107.8% during the 1st quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 2,306,729 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $1,141,113,000 after purchasing an additional 1,196,758 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC grew its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 49.3% during the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 3,617,813 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $1,904,670,000 after buying an additional 1,195,352 shares during the period. 87.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.