UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) Shares Acquired by SPC Financial Inc.

SPC Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 233.6% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 1,498 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,049 shares during the period. SPC Financial Inc.’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $876,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in UNH. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in UnitedHealth Group by 0.6% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 84,405,255 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $41,755,280,000 after acquiring an additional 544,740 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 26,062,928 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $12,893,331,000 after buying an additional 94,641 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 0.4% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 8,039,601 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $4,094,247,000 after buying an additional 35,533 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 30.0% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,816,254 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $1,942,956,000 after acquiring an additional 880,183 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 0.6% in the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 3,772,487 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $1,920,039,000 after purchasing an additional 21,149 shares in the last quarter. 87.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Up 2.7 %

Shares of UnitedHealth Group stock opened at $571.30 on Thursday. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 52-week low of $436.38 and a 52-week high of $608.63. The company has a 50 day moving average of $584.21 and a 200 day moving average of $532.84. The company has a market capitalization of $527.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.88, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 15th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $7.00 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $100.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $99.14 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.55% and a net margin of 3.66%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $6.56 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 24th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 16th were paid a $2.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 16th. This represents a $8.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.47%. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 55.70%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on UNH. KeyCorp initiated coverage on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Friday, October 11th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $675.00 target price on the stock. Argus lifted their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $570.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. HSBC lifted their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $580.00 to $610.00 in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $615.00 to $610.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $525.00 to $630.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, UnitedHealth Group has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $615.16.

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.