UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) Shares Purchased by Keeler Thomas Management LLC

Keeler Thomas Management LLC grew its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 3.2% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 11,490 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after purchasing an additional 354 shares during the period. UnitedHealth Group accounts for about 2.0% of Keeler Thomas Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest position. Keeler Thomas Management LLC’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $5,851,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of UNH. Norges Bank purchased a new position in UnitedHealth Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $5,802,231,000. Swedbank AB acquired a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the first quarter worth approximately $1,117,462,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 107.8% during the first 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 buying an additional 1,196,758 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC boosted its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 49.3% in the fourth 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. Finally, California Public Employees Retirement System boosted its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 35.9% in the fourth quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 3,090,986 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $1,627,311,000 after purchasing an additional 815,822 shares during the period. 87.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on UNH. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $481.00 to $647.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $546.00 to $559.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. HSBC increased their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $580.00 to $610.00 in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $640.00 to $680.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $525.00 to $630.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $614.17.

Insider Activity at UnitedHealth Group

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

UnitedHealth Group Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE UNH traded down $3.84 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $574.23. The company had a trading volume of 1,195,170 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,170,499. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $534.45 and a two-hundred day moving average of $508.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.88. The company has a market capitalization of $530.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.10, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.59. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 12-month low of $436.38 and a 12-month high of $591.54.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.80 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.66 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $98.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $98.73 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 3.66% and a return on equity of 26.55%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $6.14 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.69 EPS for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 24th. Investors of record on Monday, September 16th will be given a dividend of $2.10 per share. This represents a $8.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 16th. UnitedHealth Group’s payout ratio is presently 51.34%.

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.